Amourshipping Stories
by CharismaticBunn
Summary: Ash and his friends continue with their adventures, waiting for the news about the location of the pokemon league. Ash is determined more than ever to become Kalos Champion, but his world starts spinning when his view on Serena suddenly changes. - collection of "one-shots".
1. Serena's Date

**A/N: These are a collection of "one-shots" that I think would be cute to have in the anime. I put quotes around one-shots because each chapter is basically like an episode, but they all pretty much relate to one another like the anime. You don't have to read every chapter, but a few chapters might have continuity with one another. Enjoy!**

 **I will add a summary of each "episode" if you're interested in reading any of them.**

* * *

 **Summary:** Ash gets into a battle with a boy named Daniel outside of Lumiose City. The boy asks for a 'favor' from him or one of his friends if he wins. This results on Serena going on a date with the trainer.

* * *

 **EP 01: Serena's Date.**

"You can do it Ash!" Serena called out to the raven-haired boy, cupping her hands around her mouth.

Ash slightly turned his head, taking a glance at the girl who was cheering him on; a smiling curving upon his lips, "Alright Hawlucha, use Karate Chop!" Ash commanded his pokemon, turning back to give it its undivided attention.

"Haw, Hawlucha!" Hawlucha was quick to obey its trainer, and aim its attack at its current opponent.

"Dodge it Drifblim, and use Shadow Ball!" The blimp pokemon was fast to just miss Hawlucha's Karate Chop. It floated up into the air releasing a purple energy ball, and aiming it at the flying/fighting type pokemon.

"Dodge it!" Ash instructed his pokemon, but Hawlucha was just a bit too slow to get away from the ghost attack.

Ash watched as Hawlucha was thrown into the air from the attack before hitting the ground, unable to get up again.

"Hawlucha is unable to battle! Daniel is the winner!" Clemont announced the results, using his one arm to signal the winner of the battle.

"Ahh.. Hawlucha!" Ash called out to his pokemon before sending Hawlucha back into its pokeball, "You did great..." He said, looking at the pokeball in his hands before attaching it onto his belt, "Wow, you're Drifblim is pretty strong." Ash walked over to the trainer. The boy Daniel was only a few years older than him, with messy, short black hair, and hazelnut colored eyes. He had a classy sense of style as he wore a white cotton dress shirt beneath his black blazer with matching slacks, and a pair of dark brown dress shoes.

 _After winning his last badge from the Snowbelle City Gym, Ash still had a month till the start of the pokemon tournament, bringing him closer to becoming a pokemon master, and having another shot at battling the Kalos Champion, Diantha. Ash, and his friends were on their way to Lumiose City to pay a visit to Professor Sycamore, but were stopped by a trainer named Daniel who was keen on having a battle with Ash before reaching their destination._

"It is one of the strongest Drifblim's I've come across." Clemont said looking at Drifblim, as the group gathered to talk in a circle.

"I'm very well aware of my Drifblim's strength's." Daniel said, with a cocky grin spread across his face, "Now how about that bet?" He shot a piercing look at Ash.

"Oh right..." Ash said embarrassed, rubbing the back of his head, "I was so into having a battle I forgot that you challenged me in the first place with a wager..."

"Pikachu..." His yellow mouse-like pokemon shook its head at its trainers short term memory loss.

"Leave it to Ash to be too focused on a battle." Bonnie said shrugging her shoulders before crossing her arms over her chest, "He's been accepting battles nonstop ever since he received his last badge."

"I need to get all the training I can get to prepare me for the tournament..." Ash chuckled, a little bit embarrassed by the situation he was put in.

Daniel requested for Ash or one of his friends to do him a favor if he were to win the battle. If he lost, he were to do a favor for Ash. Without thinking about Daniel's intentions, Ash was quick to agree because he heard the word 'battle'.

Serena stood there giggling at Bonnie's comment. She admired Ash's thirst for a battle, but she found it funny how often Ash would forget about what he was doing or where he was going as soon as the battle ended.

"Who do you want to be your assistant?" Clemont asked, as Daniel began eying each of them.

"Her." Daniel was quick to point at the honey blonde haired girl, "I only requested a battle from you because her beauty caught my attention."

"Uhh... Okay..." Ash replied shifting his expression from happy to confused, "What did you want with Serena?"

"Nothing really..." Daniel walked over to the girl with gracefulness before lifting her hand, and raising it to touch his lips, "I request to take this young lady on a date."

"Wha-What!?" Serena said in complete surprise as she took a step back from the boy in front of her. Her face flushed in embarrassment by the trainer's request, "You can't be serious!?"

"I thought you wanted a favor..." Ash said, feeling a small sense of rage from the pit of his stomach.

"My favor is to take her out on a date." Daniel said with a smug expression on his face, "Unless she's your girlfriend... I'll be happy to back off."

"She's not my girlfriend..." Ash's responded, his cheeks turning a slight shade of pink.

"Then I don't see why I can't take her out on a date." Daniel said, the smug expression remaining on his face, "You did agree to any favor that I may ask."

"If Serena's okay with it... then I guess..." Ash trailed off.

"NO!" Serena yelled out, I will not go out with you."

"Well... You kind of have to." Clemont chose the wrong time to be smart, "Before the challenge, we all individually agreed to help him out if he won..." He began stroking his chin, analyzing the situation.

"Thank you Clemont... I'm very well aware of that." Serena shrugged, glaring at the boy with the round rimmed glasses.

"Great!" Daniel bowed down in front of Serena, "I shall have you for the day then my dear Serena." He said before taking her hand, and interlocking his fingers with hers, "I'll have her back at the Lumiose City pokemon center around eight." He said as he began leading Serena into the city. He stopped for a quick second to turn his head to look at Ash and the siblings, "If we're not back by eight, then we're obviously having a great time."

Ash's face turned red from anger, hearing Daniel's comment, "You better have her back by six!" He blurted out, his feelings were getting ahold of him. He wasn't sure, but he did not like the idea of Serena being alone with another guy. He clenched his fist in anger, wishing that he didn't agree to such a vague deal.

"Pikachu..." Pikachu said with worry in its voice.

"Oh don't worry Pikachu." Bonnie reassured the pokemon, "Serena can handle herself. If you ask me, things just got quite interesting." Bonnie finished with a grin.

"Nenene!" Dedenne popped out from Bonnie's yellow pouch.

* * *

"That Drifblim is a rather strong pokemon don't you think?" James observed through his high tech binoculars. Team Rocket was observing the group of friends from a cliffside not too far from Ash and his companions.

"Yeah, just think of all the praise we will receive if we caught it for the boss." Meowth agreed, his eyes starry from the idea of receiving praise from Giovanni.

"It seems that the one twerpette is leaving the group with that Drifblim's trainer." James said still observing the kids through his binoculars. He continued to watch Serena reluctantly walk alongside Daniel.

"That's great." Jessie said sitting up on a rock with a sly expression on her face, "We don't need to worry about the other twerps ruining our plans when we catch that Drifblim. Besides that goody-two shoes is not that great at battling. We'll be able to catch that Drifblim with ease."

"Wobbuffet!" The cyan colored pokemon was quick to stand by her side, giving her a salute.

"I sense an idea coming from you." James said, turning to look at the woman, a similar grin appearing on his face.

* * *

"Did you want to eat something Serena?" The boy who dragged Serena away from her friends asked trying to make eye contact with her.

"I think I'd rather sit here until the date is over." Serena said with contempt. She was angry about having to go on a date with a complete stranger. She was only there with him because of her morals. Ash made the bet, and Daniel won fair and square.

"I'm sorry for calling it a 'favor'…" Daniel sighed, slouching on the black metal bench, "I found you really pretty, and I wanted to get to know you when I passed by you guys, but I was too shy to approach you..." He continued shyly, "You can go back to your friends if you'd like... I didn't mean to be deceitful."

Serena turned her head, taking a peak at the messy haired boy who looked like he was genuinely sorry, "It's okay..." She sighed, turning her body to face his, "A bet is a bet, and I don't break them."She said, causing the boy to perk up, "But one tip... If you want to talk to a girl ever in the future, just say hi."

"Got it!" He said, sitting up straight, "It doesn't even have to be a date... Just think of it as two new friends hanging out!" He smiled at her.

"Only on one condition." She replied, pointing her index finger at him.

"What is it...?" His smile was quick to fade away from his face.

"We go anywhere I want and do everything I want!" She said smiling and giving him a wink before handing her hand to him to shake.

Daniel stared at the girl, his cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink. Her act of cuteness took him off guard. He wanted to squeal like a fangirl, but kept it all to himself to keep his image of being cool, "Deal." He got a firm grip of her hand and shook it as a confirmation. He then stood up from the bench, bowing down to her before using his one leg as support to kneel onto the ground, "Where would you like to go first?" He asked, lending a hand out to her.

"Well..." Serena began, blinking at Daniel's gestures, "Stop acting like I'm some kind of queen!" She said in a joking manner while shooing his hand away from her personal space.

Daniel looked up at her in embarrassment, "Anything for you my-" He stopped himself before finishing his sentence, "Yeah... Sure... Of course..." He cleared his throat.

"Great!" Serena smiled, standing up from the bench, "I heard that a fashion event is taking place at the mall today. Let's go!" Serena said as she skipped her way along the sidewalk.

* * *

"Alright Pikachu use Iron tail!" Ash called out to his favorite companion.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu questioned as it stopped chasing dedenne to stare at Ash. It was playing with the other pokemon while waiting for its turn to be groomed by Bonnie.

"Pikachu?" Clemont questioned taking his place on the other side of the battlefield, "Ash... I thought we were having a battle with your Hawlucha." Clemont scratched his head in confusion.

"Hawlucha cha Hawlucha!" Hawlucha nodded its head at its trainer, trying to get him to focus. He's been out of it for an hour now.

"You're right... I just..." Ash was feeling embarrassed. Luckily it was just a training session and not an actual battle.

"Sounds to me like you've been training too much!" Bonnie commented from the bench, using Serena's brush to comb through the fur of Serena's Sylveon, "I think it's time for you to take a break!"

"That sounds like a plan." Clemont agreed, walking over to his Luxeray that he used to help with Ash's training, "Good job Luxeray." He praised his pokemon, while petting its mane.

"You're probably right..." Ash mumbled underneath his breath, as him and Hawlucha walked over to join Bonnie, and the rest of the pokemon, "I can definitely go for a snack!" Ash placed his hand on his now growling stomach. He was hungry the entire time, but was too focused on his training too notice.

"I guess I should go and prepare ourselves some snacks." Clemont said heading towards the sliding glass doors of the pokemon center, "Do any of you guys want to help me?" He asked looking at Bonnie and Ash.

"I'll give you a hand." Ash was quick to offer his assistance before walking through the glass doors.

"Bonnie?" Clemont questioned before walking through the doors, "Are you going to continue grooming them inside?"

"No. It's a nice day out." Bonnie replied as she busily moved onto combing through Serena's Braxien, "I'll stay outside. Just call me when it's ready."

"Okay. Suit yourself." Clemont walked into the pokemon center, meeting Ash in the kitchen who was pulling out a couple of plates from a cupboard.

"Clemont...?" Ash uttered the name of the young engineer who was busy taking out a few ingredients from his knapsack, "Do you think Serena is having a good time?"

"Daniel may have been a bit tricky, but he didn't look like a bad guy to me. I'm sure Serena is enjoying her time with him." Clemont replied after a minute of deciding what to say.

"You think so?" There was a tinge of disappointed in Ash's voice, " Aww man... I feel a little worried because it was all my fault. I wish there was a way for me to see if she was okay."

"Well, just leave it all to me!" Clemont pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, his frames gleaming with a bright light. " The future is now thanks to science! Clemontic Gear on!" He pulled out a device from his knapsack that looked like a robotic fletchling. He held it above his head, "I call it the Fletchling Aroma Finder! You place an item that contains the scent of who or what you're looking for into here..." Clemont opened up the beak, revealing a small storage slot, "And then my device memorizes the scent and flies off to find what or who you're looking for and whatever my robotic fletching sees will appear on this screen." Clemont pointed at the miniature television with a few dials on it that he placed on the kitchen counter.

"Wow! Science is so amazing!" Ash praised his friends device with starry eyes.

"We just need something that belongs to Serena." Clemont said opening up the compartment on his robotic fletching.

"How about this?" Ash pulled a pink handkerchief from his backpack, "She gave it to me this morning."

"That's perfect!" Clemont grabbed the handkerchief from Ash's grasp and placed it into the compartment before hearing a click after snapping it shut, "Now let me just turn this dial to human scents... and.." Clemont bit his lip focusing on his current task, "Here we go!" He ran towards the nearest window, opening it to let his device out, "Now we just wait!" He said as him and Ash stood there staring at the TV screen. They watched from the robotic fletching's point of view as it flew to a few people trying to match Serena's scent. In a matter of minutes the fletching landed on a black iron fence with Serena in its view.

"There she is!" Ash said as he watched Serena take a swig of her drink. They were either eating a late lunch or an early dinner.

"She looks like she's having a good time." Clemont said removing a small remote attached to the side of the TV to manually control his invention.

"Well that's a relief..." Ash said staring at the girl who was now laughing at something Daniel just said, "Is there a way to hear what they're saying?" Ash asked, feeling something unpleasant coming from his chest. He didn't like whatever he was feeling.

"Yea just let me..." Clemont began turning a dial on his device.

"I didn't know you were... That's great... !" Ash and Clemont barely heard Serena through the microphone.

"It's kind of... be honest..." They heard a few words come from Daniel's mouth. Ash and Clemont couldn't hear much because of the other noises coming from the other people.

Ash reached towards the dial, cranking it to its highest setting. He had a need to hear what they were talking about. The sounds of cars and chatting people got much louder before the device sitting on the countertop began to malfunction. The images on the screen became distorted before blowing up in their faces.

"And another failure..." Clemont remarked, stunned by his machines explosion.

"It doesn't take that long to make a few snacks!" Bonnie's voice was being heard from the kitchen.

"Coming Bonnie!" Clemont called out as him and Ash began rushing with their finger sandwiches, "It'll only be another minute!"

* * *

"There are too many guards around this place." Jessie commented observing the mall from behind her newspaper. Team Rocket was sitting at a nearby cafe scouting the area, waiting for the perfect opportunity to put their plan into motion, "It's not very helpful with Officer Jenny walking around the area either." She watched as the commanding officer paced herself around the entrance of the mall.

"So much for your plan..." Meowth shrugged sharing Jessie's observation.

"It appears there's a fashion show today." James replied actually reading the newspaper, "...with one of a kind designs by Valerie the Laverre City Gym Leader."

"Those designs must be quite extraordinary if they need that many guards for a fashion show." Meowth pointed out, taking a sip from its cup of coffee.

"Indeed." James replied, bringing the newspaper closer to his face to get a better look at the caption beneath the picture of designs, "It says the outfits she designed are made with the finest gems the Kalos region has to offer."

"Oooooh!" Jessie flipped her own newspaper to the same page as James', "That's perfect! We can steal ourselves those dresses and make a lifetimes worth of money while grabbing a powerful Drifblim for the boss!"

"Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet came out from its pokeball to agree with its trainer.

"Don't attract any attention!" Jessie scolded her pokemon while the people around her began to stare.

* * *

"Wow there's so many cute trinkets!" Serena said in awe, eying the booths set up for people to browse just before the start of the fashion show.

"Did you want anything?" Daniel asked taking a step forward to stand beside her, "I can buy you something if you'd like." He offered while using his hand as a gesture to point at all the stands.

"No it's okay. You already paid for lunch. I can buy my own things." Serena declined his offer as she walked over to a booth selling different kinds of hats.

"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen!" A voice was heard from the walkway that was set up in the middle of the mall.

Serena placed the blue hat she just picked up back onto table to look at the man on the stage start up the fashion show. He had green hair with the front styled upwards, and matching green eyes. He wore what looked to be like what a first class waiter would wear at a fancy restaurant, and tied it all together with a green bowtie.

"I hope you are all enjoying yourselves!" He said through the microphone as people began to walk away from the booths and crowd around the stage.

Serena walked alongside Daniel as the lights around the stage began to dim with an upbeat song playing in the background, "I know everyone is here to view the beautiful gemstone dresses that Valerie designed, but Valerie wanted to introduce you guys all to her new spring collection, so we shall begin the show with that!" The man with the green hair announced before walking off the stage.

Serena watched excitedly amongst the crowd, as the first model walked onto the stage with a floral printed dress.

"I already know that all her designs are going to be great!" Serena squealed already deciding on buying herself a few outfits from Valerie's clothing line.

"Me too!" Daniel stood beside her, eager to see the next model and her outfit.

* * *

"Why is she taking so long?" Ash asked pacing himself around the pokemon center lobby before stopping to look at the clock hanging up on the wall, "It's already seven forty five!" He complained. He didn't think that Serena would be out that long. She reluctantly left with Daniel because of Ash's loss, so he thought that she would at least be back by six.

"I told you Daniel wasn't a bad guy. She's probably having a great time." Clemont said while fiddling with his own trinkets on a table, "Besides you still have fifteen minutes until eight."

"But she..." Ash stopped not knowing what to say. He wanted her back at the pokemon center sitting next to her while he polished his badges.

"Pikachu..." Pikachu said with worry in its voice. It was sad to see Ash in such a stressful mood.

"Sounds like someone is jeeealoous~" Bonnie hummed the words coming out of her mouth.

"Nenene~" Dedenne tried its best to follow Bonnie's tune.

"I am not!" Ash crossed his arms over his chest, pouting, "I'm just worried because it's my fault she had to go off with him in the first place!"

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu shared Ash's anger.

"If you say so." Bonnie grinned enjoying the situation she put Ash in, "So if Daniel were to kiss her before the dates over, you'd be okay with that right?"

"What?!" Ash said taken aback by Bonnie's words. An image of Serena kissing Daniel popped up in his imagination, "She can kiss whoever she wants." He gritted through his teeth.

Bonnie placed her hand over her mouth to contain her giggles.

"If you're worried so much why don't you just look for her outside? She's probably close by." Clemont suggested, looking up at the grinning Bonnie and the pouting Ash.

"Y-ye-yes." Ash hesitated, "I just want to make sure she's okay..."

"Jeaaaaalous!" Bonnie hummed out in the same tone as Ash exited the pokemon center.

* * *

"And now... Valerie's gemstone line!" The green haired man announced as everyone cheered in excitement.

"I can't wait to see the dress made from rubies." Serena looked at the fashion brochure containing each design and a small description.

"Sorry everyone.. It appears we're having a problem." The host announced as one of the assistants whispered into his ear, "We will just be a second." He said before disappearing behind the lavish curtains.

 _Kabooom!_ Everyone looked up to see an explosion at the side of the mall.

"What's going on!?" Daniel questioned with concern as everyone around the mall started running off in different directions.

Serena looked up to see a familiar balloon floating up into the giant hole in the ceiling, "Team Rocket!" She said out loud before running towards the exit.

"Team Rocket?" Daniel questioned as he followed behind her, maneuvering himself around the crowd.

"They are a group of bad guys who try to steal other peoples pokemon!" Serena said out loud, running out of the exit, "They must be up to no good if they are already trying to escape!" She stopped outside, scanning the skies for the Meowth hot air balloon,"Over there!" She pointed ahead at the hooligans who weren't too far.

"Come on out Drifblim!" Daniel threw his pokeball in front of him as he ran towards the balloon. "Use Shadow Ball at the balloon!" He instructed his pokemon.

"Looks like your plan worked Jessie!" Meowth praised his crimson colored haired comrade.

"Of course it did!" She said with a cocky tone before sending out her Gourgeist, "Counter it with shadow ball!" She commanded.

"Gourgeist!" Her pumpkin pokemon sent an energy ball to the energy ball heading in their direction. The two attacks collided into an explosion emitting a huge cloud of smoke.

"Drifblim use it again!" Daniel instructed, but Drifblim was not responding to his commands, "Drifblim!" Daniel called out through the smoke above them.

"Sorry! Your Drifblim is ours!" James called out from above them.

The cloud of smoke dissipated to reveal drifblim trapped in a cage attached at the bottom of the basket.

"Prepare for trouble, We finally came up with a great plan!" Jessie began.

"And make it double, looks like I'll live to be an old and rich man!" James continued their motto.

"What are they doing?" Daniel asked in confusion.

"They have this need to say this lame motto every time me and the others come across them." Serena shrugged her shoulders, "It's pretty tiring if you ask me..."

"HEY!" Jessie said, irritated, "Don't call our motto lame while we're saying it!"

"Yeah! How dare you stop us from completing it!" James agreed, holding a fist up into the air.

"Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet once again came from out of its owners pokeball, causing the basket to tilt and drop one of the gemstone dresses.

"You stole the dresses too!?" Serena said outraged by their shenanigans, "Alright Sylveon come on-" She stopped realizing that she gave all her pokeballs to Bonnie that same morning because she asked her if she could groom them. _Oh no..._ Serena thought as she slouched in disappointment.

"What's the matter?!" Jessie taunted her, "Forgot your pokemon?" She cackled at the honey blonde haired girls short term memory.

"I'm still not letting you get away!" Serena called out before running towards the balloon at full speed and using a bench on the side to help her jump up into the air. She was quick to grab onto some rope hanging out from Team Rocket's basket.

"How is that going to solve anything!?" Jessie questioned, laughing at the girl who was hanging onto the rope, the balloon rising much higher into the night sky.

"I don't know..." Serena said in fear, looking at the ground that was getting further away from her. _Why did I do this? Why did I do this?!_

"Gourgeist, use dark pulse on the rope!" She instructed, and gourgeist was happy to oblige.

"Not so fast!" Serena heard Ash's voice. She looked below her to see the boy standing beside Daniel, "Talonflame save Serena and Pikachu use Iron Tail on the cage!" He instructed.

"Pikaa Chuuuuuuuu!" Pikachu jumped up from Ash's shoulder readying its attack, "Piiikaa!" Pikachu hit the cage, causing it to crack and break.

"Drifblim!" Daniel ran towards his pokemon giving it a hug as Talonflame flew up to Serena's side as she grabbed ahold of its feathers.

"Alright Drifblim use Shadow Ball!" Daniel commanded his pokemon. Drifblim sent a purple orb at the balloon, piercing it in the process.

"Uh oh..." Jessie said knowing what was coming after them, "Don't tell me-"

"We're blasting off again!" The balloon exploded, sending Team Rocket high into the sky.

Daniel tried his best to run towards all of the falling dresses with his Driflim, trying to save them all from hitting the ground.

"Serena!" Ash called out to the girl as talonflame descended and made a safe landing, "Are you okay?" He asked, pulling her into a hug as soon as she stepped off of his pokemon.

"I'm fine..." Serena mumbled, her face turning red by Ash's sudden sign of affection.

"Serena!" Bonnie called out, running towards the pair.

"Ash!" Clemont tried to say, out of breath, but was having a hard time keeping up with his younger sister.

Ash was quick to pull away from Serena knowing that Bonnie was going to have to say something about it.

"Are you guys alright?" Bonnie questioned standing in front of the pair.

"Yeah..." Serena smiled, happy to see that her friends were all worrying for her, "How did you guys know where to find me?"

"Well Bonnie and I saw you in the background running when an urgent news report came up on the television screen." Clemont said still out of breath, answering her question.

"...And Ash was just looking for you the entire time." Bonnie teased the boy standing beside her.

"Huh?" Serena blinked in surprise by Bonnie's words.

"I was training too much and just needed some fresh air..." Ash began as Pikachu climbed back onto his shoulder, "Then I saw an explosion, and went to check it out..."

"Of course you'd be the one to run towards it instead of away from it." Serena laughed.

"Where's Daniel?" Clemont questioned looking around, "Weren't you with him the entire time?"

"Yeah.. He's-"

"A little help..." Daniel interrupted Serena, and the group of friends turned their head to see that he managed to save all of the gemstone dresses from hitting the ground, but ended up standing in an awkward and uncomfortable pose.

The group laughed at boy, walking towards him to lend him their help.

* * *

"Thank you so much for saving all of the dresses." Officer Jenny thanked the heroes as a group of her officers took the dresses from them to rightfully return them for the show, "If there is anything I could do for you guys, just let me know."

"No we're just happy to see that the dresses are safe." Serena replied, "I hope none of them are scratched up or anything though... considering they are made out of gems."

"Actually these ones are fakes... We put them there in case something like this happened." Officer Jenny said with a smile on her face.

"No wonder why they felt kind of light..." Daniel mumbled beneath his breath.

"Well the real ones are perfectly safe and sound, so once again I thank you all. Please enjoy the rest of the fashion show and shopping stands." Officer Jenny said before giving them a nod and walking away from them.

"Cool let's check out the booth over there!" Bonnie said grabbing a hold of Serena's wrist in her one hand and Clemont's in her other before dragging them towards the booth.

"Nenene!" Dedenne agreed in excitement.

"Bonnie I can walk by myself!" Clemont complained.

Ash turned around to follow the others, but stopped when Daniel tugged on his shirt.

"Huh?" Ash turned around to look at Daniel who had a serious expression on his face.

"I'm sorry for using you to get to Serena." He apologized, "She's so pretty... I just wanted to get to know her."

"It's alright." Ash smiled, "She is something..." Ash turned to look at Serena who was holding up two necklaces in front of her.

"You're lucky to have a girl like that around you... She wouldn't even stop talking about you the entire time that I was with her."

"What are you talking about?" Ash blinked, his cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink. _She was talking about me...?_

"It's nothing..." Daniel smiled to himself noticing something about the way Ash was staring at Serena, "You should do something soon before someone else swoops down and takes her..." He said before walking pass him to join the others.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu questioned, confused by Daniel's words.

"I don't know …" Ash mumbled, not understanding them either. He stared at Serena who was looking at a bunch of other pieces of jewelry laying around the table. He shook his head before running to join her and the others, "What are you guys looking at!?" He asked as he reached the table.

 _And so, Ash learned to not always accept battles especially when there was a vague deal on the line. He might have also learned a thing or two about the feelings of love... As the journey continues._


	2. Meet Cilan

**Summary:** Ash runs into Cilan, his traveling companion from the Unova region and introduces him to his friends. Serena and Cilan hit it off, and become really good friends in an instant making Ash feel uncomfortable.

 **EP 02: Meet Cilan.**

 _Ash and his friends finally have the time to pay a visit to Professor Sycamore at his lab to tell him about what's been happening so far on their journey. Shortly after, the place got attacked by Team Rocket who once again attempted to steal Professor Sycamore's pokemon, and of course pikachu._

"We're blasting off again!" Team Rocket cried out in unison as they blasted off, disappearing into the distance leaving nothing but a brief shining star up in the blue, cloudless sky.

"Pikachu!" Ash called out to his mouse like pokemon before diving to the ground, catching Pikachu in the palm of his hands.

"Chaaa~!" Pikachu said, smiling at its trainer.

"Are you two okay?" Serena ran over to the pair, helping Ash to stand up again - something that she seemed to frequently do every time she felt like Ash was in some kind of trouble.

"Thanks Serena," Ash thanked the girl standing in front of him, an unfamiliar warmth spreading throughout his body when he grabbed ahold of her hand.

"I should consider stripping this entire place of a roof." Professor Sycamore joked examining yet another hole that was created on his ceiling. He just got the last one repaired not too long ago. Ash, and his friends looked upwards to see the crumbling pieces of wood and debris falling to the ground below them. They all wanted to say that it wasn't as bad as the last few times, but who were they kidding. It was just as bad... If anything it was worse.

Ash grimaced knowing that it was all his fault. It was Team Rocket that followed him everywhere, not them. They literally followed him to each region, "Sorry about that..." Ash apologized shyly while rubbing his nape as he looked at Professor Sycamore.

"Don't worry about it." Professor Sycamore laughed before walking up to Ash.

"Ash!" Serena said in shock, pointing to a giant tear on his shirt. "Your shirt... it's ripped!"

Ash tried his best to turn his head over his shoulder to examine the tear, but his line of vision was doing him no good. Pikachu jumped off his shoulder, so that he could take off his blue collared shirt to inspect the damage that's been done, "Awww man..." Ash said to himself as he examined the tear. It ran from just beneath the collar right to the hem.

"This looks like a job for-" Clemont began, propping his knapsack on the floor, ready to pull out his latest invention.

"I don't think so big brother." Bonnie placed her hand on top of her brothers bag to prevent him from unzipping it any further, "We need to fix it, not rip it to shreds."

"Bonnie!" Clemont pouted, "This one won't blow up!"

"Which ones haven't?" Bonnie teased her brother before the two began bickering with one another.

"I can try my best to sew it..." Serena offered, using her index finger to poke through the hole of the shirt. She was confident that she could sew it well, but she knew that it wouldn't be aesthetically pleasing to the eye. There was a bunch of loose thread, and apart of it already, somehow became frayed and worn out.

"That would be great!" Ash smiled at the honey blonde haired girl happy to know that he was travelling with someone who was able to sew.

* * *

"Alright Pikachu, use Iron Tail!" Ash commanded his pokemon, and Pikachu was quick to jump up into the air, readying its attack.

"Counter it with Pin Missile!" Clemont instructed his favorite grass pokemon, Chespin.

The two pokemon aimed their attacks, and gave it all they got. The two moves collided with one another, creating an explosion just above them, knocking both of their pokemon to the ground. The two landed on their feet, ready for their next attack.

They were back at the pokemon center doing their daily routine since Ash received his last gym badge. Clemont would help out Ash with his training, Bonnie would be playing with the other pokemon, and Serena would be grooming her three companions. Although, this time Serena was rummaging through her sewing materials trying to find something that would help with all of the loose threads on Ash's blue shirt.

"Ash?" A voice sounded not too far from them.

Ash broke out of his rhythm, looking up see a familiar face standing just behind Clemont. His green hair, green eyes, green bowtie... no doubt it was Cilan, "Cilan? Is that you?" Ash perked up squinting his eyes. He began to walk closer to the familiar face to get a better view.

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu tilted its head taking a second to realize who it was, "Pikachu!" It jumped up onto Ash's shoulder as Ash made his way across the practice field to Cilan.

"No way... It is you!" Ash commented after analyzing Cilan's facial features.

"The one and only!" Cilan bowed down before looking back at raven haired boy. The two began inspecting one another, noticing the slight physical changes that they've gone through during the time they went separate ways. Ash could see that Cilan wasn't as scrawny as before and Cilan could tell that Ash has grown a couple of inches since they last met.

"What are you doing here in Kalos!?" Ash asked curious to hear his answer.

"I've decided to travel to other regions starting off with Kalos to improve my skills as a pokemon connoisseur." He began, "and I just have a thirst to try new things."

"That's great." Ash said, giving his friend a smile. He was always happy to see the people around him do anything they can to make their dreams come true.

"Pikachuu!" Pikachu agreed.

"I'm sorry if I was interrupting your battle. I thought I saw you yesterday at the fashion show event at the Lumiose City Mall, and I decided to check out the pokemon center to see if you were here."

"You guessed right! Let me introduce you to my friends!" Ash said as he turned his body to face Clemont who was staring at them the entire time.

"Hi, I'm Clemont!" Clemont was quick to introduce himself, "and this is Chespin" he gestured his hands downwards to show his grass pokemon.

"Chespin, Ches!" Chespin waved at the gentleman.

"Hi, I'm Bonnie!" Bonnie skipped her way over from the bench before pointing at the mouse-like pokemon sitting on top of her head, "And this is dedenne!"

"Nene!" Dedenne greeted, holding its tiny paws up in the air.

"It's so nice to meet you all! I'm Cilan, a friend of Ash's from the Unova region." He introduced himself with gracefulness, "But who is that over there...?" Cilan pointed behind the three. Their eyes followed the direction of his finger to the girl who was sitting on the bench busily trying to sew Ash's shirt without any error or imperfections.

"Oh... That's Serena." Ash scratched his cheek, blushing at just saying her name, "Hey Serena! Come meet Cilan!" He called out for her, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"Pika Pika!"

Serena looked up, her vision blurry from staring at the seam for too long, Oh I'm so sorry!" She placed her project beside her before, running to join the others, "I'm Serena!" She said before getting a good look at Cilan, "Hey you're the host from the show last night!"

"Yeah!" Cilan smiled, "I think I saw you standing in the front."

"How did you end up being a host for Valerie's clothing line?" Serena asked. She loved anything that revolved around fashion, and being a host for a fashion show was something on her bucket list.

"Well actually..." Cilan began, stroking his chin, "I was watching my very first pokemon performance here in Lumiose City to see how performers connect with their pokemon. Before the performance started I saw Valerie who was having a wardrobe malfunction. I offered her my assistance, and she liked how I worked with the tools and fabric... so she asked me to become her temporary assistant. She's been planning on launching a new line with a bunch of styles, and she's been needing the extra help. "

"Wow! Really!?" Serena said in awe, "That's so cool! I'd like to be an assistant for someone as great as Valerie. I could probably learn a thing or two about creating my own dresses!" Images of her wearing her own ideas began filling her mind.

"I'm sure she could use the extra set of hands. I'd have to give her a call sometime if she ever has free time..." Cilan raised his eyebrow, thinking about all the times Valerie couldn't come to the phone because of gym battles or fashion meetings. He shook his head, shaking his thoughts from all the stress he went and has still been going through as an amateur assistant, "I'm sure she'd love to have all of your help!"

"Really!? YAAY!" Bonnie perked up. For a second she thought only Serena was going to have a chance of helping out with something huge.

"Do you think you could possibly help me with sewing Ash's shirt?" She asked pointing to the project on the bench that's been giving her a migraine for the last while.

"I can try offering my assistance..." Cilan said as the two walked over to the bench, "I see Ash is still careless about his clothes though..." He laughed, and Serena joined.

"I think those two are going to get along really well." Bonnie said as the three of them stared at Serena and Cilan who were now talking about sewing techniques.

Ash blinked, staring at his two friends talk as if they have known each other for years. He was happy to see Serena talk with someone who shared a few of the same interests as her, but at the same time he was feeling a bit... angry about it. Even if he just saw Cilan, a part of him wanted to walk right up to him and tell him to leave.

"Why don't you guys come over to Valerie's studio tomorrow here in Lumiose?" Cilan said out loud breaking Ash from his thoughts, "She most likely has something that will help you fix that shirt more professionally."

"Really? That would be great!" Serena said with excitement. She couldn't wait to see what Valerie's studio looked like.

* * *

"Wow!" Bonnie and Serena reacted at the same time, stunned by the rooms appearance.

They were standing in a small, but spacious rectangular room with shelves propped up on either side. There were a bunch of fabrics and other sewing materials on the left, and different kinds of sewing machines on the right. At the very back was a huge blackboard with notes, and different textile patterns tacked onto it. In the middle was a huge "L" shaped desk with a bunch of papers and folders neatly arranged on top of it.

"I can only imagine what her studio looks like back at Laverre City..." Clemont said eying the sewing machines with curiosity. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, wanting to examine the mechanisms of all the machines.

"It sure looks great." Ash said, walking over to the shelf filled with fabrics, feeling the material of one that looked jagged and rough.

"So what are you doing for Valerie?" Bonnie asked, making herself comfortable on a stool placed by the desk.

"She currently wants me stay here in Lumiose City to find any kind of pattern that looks unique... Something inspirational." Cilan said before looking to the blackboard, a worried look on his face. Everything he thought looked interesting to him was currently hanging up on that black surface, "She has a few other assistants in other cities doing the same thing."

"I think she will be able to create something cool with these." Serena said looking at the pictures and textiles on the blackboard. The pictures ranged from something as simple as stripes to crazy patterns that would make your head hurt, "Valerie is a kind and great person. She's going to love anything you give her!" Serena reassured Cilan, noticing the worried look on his face.

"Yeah, she was pretty cool!" Ash said, walking over next to Serena.

"You think so?" Cilan asked his stress slowly going away. It was always nice to hear some reassurance, "We should get started on fixing that shirt of yours then!" He said before standing up straight, ready to grab some materials off the shelves.

* * *

"Oh look its that twerp from before." Meowth pointed out, watching as Cilan walked from a shelf to the desk.

"That place is a designers dream come true!" James said ignoring Meowths comment.

"Think of all of clothes I can design!" Jessie said with starry eyes, visions of her own brand of clothing filling her mind. She didn't care much about Cilan either. "I can become a famous fashion designer, and earn us tonnes of money!"

"Yeah... Sure... Too bad your fashion sense is a bit on the scary side." Meowth teased, shrugging its shoulders.

"What did you say!?" Jessie taunted, hovering above the feline pokemon, glowering down at it.

"Nothing! Meowth said hurriedly, sweat dripping down from its forehead.

"That better be nothing!" She crossed her arms over her chest before looking through the glass once again, "We're going to steal everything in that room!"

"How are we going to do that?" James asked, as the three of them ducked below the window when Clemont passed by.

"We'll simply steal everything at night when no ones around." Jessie said, proud by her idea.

* * *

"I think we should head out now." Ash said looking at the digital clock placed on the desk. They've been there for three hours, and the sun was starting to set. He wanted to get in some training time before it got too dark.

"Yeah... I think I have another idea for an invention." Clemont agreed, his face looking like it was bursting with ideas.

"I think I'm going to stay here..." Serena bit her lip, staring at a bunch of plain fabrics hanging up on the wall. She fixed Ash's shirt, and he was grateful about it, but she just wasn't too happy about the outcome. It looked great, but she felt like she could do something better.

"Me too!" Bonnie agreed, spinning around on the stool, "I wanna try making something for dedenne!"

"Nene~!"

"Suit yourself then. We'll see you guys back at the pokemon center!" Clemont said heading out the door.

Ash followed behind him, stopping to take a glance at the honey blonde haired girl who was trying to pull out a big roll of white fabric from the shelf. He wanted her to come back to the pokemon center with him and Clemont, but he also liked seeing her doing something that she loved. He let out a small smile before following Clemont out the door.

"Hey Cilan?" Serena walked over to the pokemon connoisseur holding rolls of blue and white fabric in her arms, "Do you think I can use these?"

"Sure. I don't think Valerie will mind." He replied placing a few pieces of paper on the desk, "What are you going to use it for?"

"Nothing special... I just want to improve my sewing skills." Serena blushed. She had something else in mind.

* * *

 _~ Four Hours Later ~_

"Ash it's time for dinner!" Bonnie called out, her head peeking out through the doors.

Ash was lying on the dirt with his pokemon, dirt all over his face, and clothes, trying to catch his breath. He spent the last few hours doing some intense training with his pokemon.

"I'm coming!" Ash called out using the remainder of his energy to pull himself off from the ground. He walked into the pokemon center with his pokemon following closely behind him. He opened the door to the dining area to see Bonnie and Clemont already sitting down at a table with their plates of food in front of them, and their pokemon already munching on their food on the floor next to their table. He scanned the area noticing that Serena was no where to be seen, "Where's Serena?" Ash asked, taking his place beside Clemont at the table as Pikachu jumped off his shoulder to join the others, "She didn't come back with you?" He looked up at Bonnie, grabbing his spoon.

"No... I made this hat for dedenne!" Bonnie replied, pulling out a tiny hat that looked like a yellow beret from her pocket, "...And then I left because they were talking about things I could not understand. I think she's helping Cilan with a project!" She said happily, placing the beret onto the table, so she could put it on dedenne's little head after they finished eating dinner.

"Come to think of it.." Clemont began, "I think Cilan and Serena would make a great match." Clemont placed a spoonful of rice and vegetables into his mouth.

"What do you mean by that?" Ash asked gritting his teeth.

"I just think they would make an excellent pair." Clemont pointed out before turning to look at Ash who had a sullen look on his face, "Why do you suddenly get so flustered about anything involving Serena?" He asked.

"What?!" Ash said bewildered, "I'm not! Friends worry about each other. I'd be worried about Bonnie too if she stayed out this late!" He pointed at Bonnie who was sitting across the table eating her small bowl of soup. He then turned to Clemont and gave him a glare.

"I don't think so..." Bonnie murmured clearly understanding Ash's feelings.

"Why are you glaring at me?!" Clemont said panicked, taken aback by Ash's change in mood.

Bonnie giggled to herself as she stared at the two boys bicker in front of her. She knew what was going on without Ash even knowing it. She was enjoying every moment of it, and her brothers denseness and wrong choice of words always seemed to making everything much more enjoyable for her.

* * *

"That twerp left hours ago, and that twerpette is still here!" Jessie said with impatience in her voice, "Why isn't she leaving yet?!" She watched through the window staring at Serena who was busily cutting a long piece of ribbon, "I want to get my fashion empire started!"

"It's not that late..." James said, yawning, "It's only... 4 AM." He checked the time on his wrist watch, "I'm sure she'll …." He wasn't able to finish his sentence because of his yearn to slumber. It didn't even matter to him that he was asleep on the stairs of the fire escape.

"Meowth do something!" She said with anger, before turning around to see that Meowth has fallen asleep next to James.

She rolled her eyes before averting her gaze from her sleeping teammates to look back at Serena who was now bobbing her head. Her drowsiness was starting to get ahold of her, "Wake up you fools!" Jessie slapped the two in the face.

"Owww. Whaat?" Meowth woke up with drool all over his face, "Is it time for breakfast!?"

"No she fell asleep!" Jessie said pointing through the window to the girl whose head was now resting on the box she just wrapped, "Let's get started!"

* * *

Ash woke up to an unpleasant cramp in his neck, and an aching body. He opened his eyes, giving them a good rub before finally noticing that he fell asleep in the pokemon lobby with Pikachu there laying on the couch beside him. He looked up at the wall to see the time on the clock. 7AM. He jumped up surprised by the time... He didn't think that he would end up sleeping on the couch. Why didn't Clemont, or Bonnie, or even Serena wake him up!? He was only sitting there because he was waiting for Serena to come back.

"Pika... Pikaa...?" Pikachu awoken to Ash's noisy movement. It sat up to look at its trainer who was darting its eyes everywhere in panic, "Pikachu...?"

Ash turned his head to look at his pokemon rub its eyes, "Sorry Pikachu..." He apologized, "I didn't mean to wake you up... I'm just surprised that we fell asleep here..."

"Pika?" Pikachu turned its head right, then left then back to the right, not realizing that they fell asleep there either.

He walked over to the room they were sleeping at, slowly opening the door to see Bonnie, and Clemont still sound asleep. He glanced over Serena's bed noticing that it hasn't even been touched. She either woke up really early... or never came back. Ash's mind began to fill with images of Serena, and Cilan. He clenched his fist in anger wondering why it bothered him so much. He's never thought much about Serena before, but she was suddenly always on his mind. What changed?

Still, it didn't stop him from leaving the center to see if she was still at Valerie's studio...

* * *

Serena coughed, choking on some of the drool that's been spilling out of her mouth. She wiped her mouth in embarrassment, happy to see that no one was there to witness her sleeping like a slob. She sat up, looking at the box in front of her that was nicely gift wrapped in blue wrapping paper, and tied together with a white bow. She was happy to know that she finished her gift for Ash on time. She gazed upon the clock on the desk noticing that it was ten minutes past seven. _Oh no... I fell asleep here..._ She grabbed her box, ready to leave only to drop it on the floor in front of her. She looked around the room noticing that everything was gone. The fabric, the supplies, the sewing machines... even Cilan's hard work was gone. She must have been very tired to not notice a burglar steal everything.

"What am I going to do? Cilan is going to be so angry..." Serena mumbled to herself in distress, before running to the window to open it. She darted her eyes all over the streets looking for any kind of clue as to who stole all of Valerie's things. Her eyes stopped looking down at the alley in front of her, noticing some scrap pieces of fabric leaving a trail on the ground. She scurried outside, ready to follow the trail of scrap.

"Serena!" She turned to see Ash running her way, "Did you stay here last night?" He asked out of breath.

"Ash!" Serena cried, getting a firm grip of his shoulders, "Someone stole everything from Valerie's studio! Cilan's going to be angry with me!" She said with a worriness in her eyes, "I think they went this way!" She pointed to the trail of scrap.

"We should hurry then!" He said determined to catch the thief. He grabbed her hand and began running in the direction of the scrap.

They stopped at an open field, crowded around a few dozen oak trees.

"Team Rocket!" Ash called out, as the two watched Meowth try to lug a box of materials into their balloon, "I should've known!"

"How did you even find us!?" James asked surprised.

"You shouldn't leave a trail!" Serena said pointing at the trail that lead right to Meowth, "That stuff doesn't belong to you!"

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu yelled out in anger.

"Meowth!" Jessie said in anger, "You should be watching where you're going!"

"I'm sorry..." Meowth said dumbfounded, placing the box on the ground, "My claws might have made a hole in the box..."

"That's no excuse!"

"Well you were being so bossy and pushy, it made me flustered." He said crossing his arms over his chest.

"We don't have time for this!" Serena called out in anger before reaching for a pokeball from her cardigan, "Let's go Braxien!" She threw her pokeball out, releasing Braxien into the field.

"Braxien Brax!" Braxien was ready to battle.

"Use flamethrower!"

Braxien grabbed its branch from its bushy tail before sending a flame of swirls at the bunch of misfits.

"Wobbuffet you know what to do!" Jessie called out to her pokemon.

"Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet saluted, jumping into the air using its Mirror Coat to counter the attack.

Serena and Ash jumped to the side just avoiding the flamethrower that was about to hit them.

"James! Start the balloon!" Jessie commanded, getting into the basket.

"We have to stop the balloon!" Ash called out, looking at the giant blown up Meowth slowly ascending into the air, "Pikachu use Iron tail!"

"Pikaaa Chuuu..." Pikachu did a few flips in the air before its tail turned into iron, "Pika!" It striked at the floating object, making the hot air balloon fall to the ground.

"Braxien! Use flamethrower!" Serena commanded as Ash told Pikachu to use thunderbolt.

The two attacks flowed together in unison, striking Team Rocket before a huge explosion sent them up into the air.

"I told you we should have just stuck to a plan on capturing pikachu!" Meowth complained as they shot up higher into the sky.

"Why would it matter?" James asked discouraged, "It would probably end up this way anyways..."

"We're blasting off again!" They all cried out in unison, followed by Wobbufett's call.

"Are you guy alright?!" Cilan asked running towards the pair.

"Yeah..." Serena replied turning to look at him, "At least all the stuff is safe..." Serena managed to say before falling to the ground, taking a seat in exhaustion.

"I didn't know that you were still dealing with Team Rocket..." Cilan said amused, looking at Ash.

"Yeah..." Ash replied in embarrassment, using his index finger to scratch his cheek. "They don't seem to budge..."

"Serena, did you...?" Cilan averted his gaze from Ash to look at Serena.

"Ohh... right!" Serena blushed before standing up again, running towards the building with Braxien following along behind her.

"I think you should follow her..." Cilan winked at Ash before walking forward to pick up the materials lying about the grass, "I'll get started on bringing everything back to the office."

Ash blinked in confusion, turning his head to look at his favorite companion.

"Pikachu..." Pikachu blinked, not knowing what was going on either.

Ash walked back to the building and proceeded up the stairs, only to see Serena coming back down holding a box.

"This is for you Ash!" She said out of breath handing him the nicely wrapped gift.

"For me?" He asked with wide eyes admiring the neat wrapping.

"Yeah..." She blushed.

"What is it?"

"You're gonna have to open it..." She said smiling sweetly before running down the stairs, "I hope you like it..." She said before running out the door, flustered by the thought of giving Ash a gift.

Ash walked up into the office, placing the gift on the desk. He opened an envelope attached to the top, taking out a piece of paper, and unfolding it to read the note,

 _Ash, I know you're just being nice about your shirt, but you deserve to travel with tear free pieces of clothing._

 _\- Serena_

He set the letter onto the desk, untying the ribbon and removing the lid from the box. His eyes widened in surprise to see a new shirt, that looked exactly like his current one, neatly folded of the box. He lifted up the shirt, unfolding it to inspect the seams and the fabric. It looked like it was made by a professional.

"Pikachu." Pikachu beckoned its trainer to keep looking inside of the box.

Ash looked down to see another few more pieces of clothing. Another shirt, an undershirt and even a pair of pants.

"Wow..." Ash mumbled to himself. _So this is why she never came back last night...?_

He placed everything back into the box, then walked over to the window located at the back of the room, glancing out to see Serena and Cilan talking to Bonnie and Clemont who seemed to have just arrived at the scene. He focused on Serena who mostly was explaining everything that happened that morning. The feeling he's been feeling around her lately, returned to his body. He's never felt anything like it before, and he didn't understand it all. All he knew is that he liked it.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu jumped onto the windowsill noticing something was off about its trainer.

"Let's go help them out!" Ash looked down to his curious companion, rubbing its head.

"Pikaa!"

 _And so Ash and Pikachu ran outside, eager to restore the studio to how it once looked. He reunited with a great friend from the past, and was able to create new bonds between the people around him. He's maybe even gotten one step closer to understanding his own unfamiliar feelings for Serena... as the journey continues._

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **The Very Long & Tiring Day: **There's a flu going around Lumiose City, and Serena is unfortunate enough to have caught it. As Clemont has misplaced the medicine he got for Ash when he got sick, him and Bonnie set out to the other side of the city to grab more medicine, but they encounter a few obstacles along the way. Ash's duty is to take care of Serena while they are gone, but he has an incredibly hard time when he doesn't realize that Serena is kind of crazy when she's not feeling well...


	3. The Long & Tiring Day

**Summary:** There's a flu going around Lumiose City, and Serena is unfortunate enough to have caught it. As Clemont has misplaced the medicine he got for Ash when he got sick, him and Bonnie set out to the other side of the city to grab more medicine, but they encounter a few obstacles along the way. Ash's duty is to take care of Serena while they are gone, but he has an incredibly hard time when he doesn't realize that Serena is kind of crazy when she's not feeling well...

* * *

 **EP 03: The Very Long & Tiring Day**

 _After spending his days endlessly training, Ash has been spending all of his mornings in front of the television screen waiting for any kind of update about the official sign up date, and location of the pokemon league. Clemont was there beside him, tinkering with his gadgets, and Bonnie was there playing with dedenne..._

Ash has been watching the news for twenty minutes now, and the only information he got from the reporter on the screen was about a sale on pokeballs, and a terrible flu that's been going around the region.

"… And that's everything for today..." The reporter concluded before giving a quick summary of what she just talked about for the last hour.

"Awww man..." Ash sighed before reaching for the remote control to turn off the TV.

"Pika Pika..." Pikachu shared its disappointment with its trainer.

"On the bright side... you didn't catch that cold she's been talking about." Clemont said screwing a nail into the side of his latest invention.

"Yeah colds are yucky!" Bonnie agreed with her brother, laying on her stomach on one of the couches, tickling dedenne's belly.

"Nenene~"

"Yeah... I guess you guys are right..." Ash said, scratching his head. He was happy about all the small things that was currently making his life feel awesome, but hearing anything about the league would make his life even more awesome.

"Yeah...you're...pretty...lucky..." They heard Serena's voice sound from behind them. It sounded weak, and nasally. The trio turned their heads in sync to see Serena, getting a grip of the doorway, her eyes barely open and her face flushed.

"Serena, are you okay?" Ash said with an immense amount of worry. He hurried over to the girl whose legs were trembling from her lack of strength, "I think you should go back to bed..." He grimaced before lending his arm out to her for support.

She stared at the raven haired boy's arm that was right in front of her, beckoning for her to hold onto it, "Yeah...no... I'm fine... I think I just..." She grazed the surface of his skin with her fingers just before falling to the ground, falling into a state of unconsciousness.

"Serena!?" Ash kneeled down wrapping his arms around her to pick her up from the cold tiled floor.

"Pika Pika!"

"Serena!" Bonnie, and Clemont yelled out in sync, rushing over to her and Ash's side.

"She's burning up..." Clemont said, kneeling on the ground beside Ash, feeling her forehead with the back of his hand.

"Big brother, how about those extra pills we got when Ash was sick!?" Bonnie suggested, squeezing Serena's hand. She was very much worried about her friend.

"Oh right! I'll go check my bag!" Clemont said, hurriedly walking over to his knapsack, digging through all the pockets.

"I'll bring her back to her bed." Ash said lifting up Serena, giving her a piggyback to their sleeping quarters.

Pikachu followed behind Ash before jumping onto the bed, moving the sheets aside. Ash gently placed the ill girl back into her bed before placing the blankets on top of her. He stared at the girl who seemed to be fast asleep. _Serena helped me when I was sick... I should be helping her this time..._ Ash made a fist determined to nurse the girl back to health.

"Oh no!" Ash heard Clemont say out loud in distress.

He and Pikachu ran back to the seating area to see a bunch of Clemont's gadget's and gizmos scattered around the area, "What's wrong?" He asked picking up a wrench from the floor.

"I seemed to have misplaced the medicine..." He mumbled beneath his breath, feeling like a failure.

"Big brother!" Bonnie puffed her cheeks in anger, "How could you!?"

"I'm sorry!" He grimaced, "We're constantly on the move, I must have forgotten it somewhere..."

"We're going to have to get more!" Bonnie scowled.

* * *

"Today's going to be a great day!" The man with the periwinkle hair stretched his arms above his head looking forward to the day ahead of him, "We will be successful today with capturing Pikachu!"

"You got that right!" His feline companion agreed, standing next to him reaching for its toes, "Join us Jessie!"

The two teammates from Team Rocket continued with their stretching, until James finally came to a stop, worried by Jessie's lack of response.

"Jessie?" James peaked his head in through the room Jessie had all to herself, "Ahhh!" He screamed out in surprise to see Jessie with a disheveled hairstyle. The lack of hairspray was making James nervous, and the amount of snot dripping from her nose was making her look like a cubchoo. She stood on her feet, slouching with her body trembling in weakness.

"What's going on?" Meowth peaked through the door below James to see an unfamiliar side to Jessie, "Ahhh... It's hideous!"

"I will... get you for that.." She slowly raised her index finger to point at Meowth. She wanted to walk up to him and smack him on the head, but her energy was doing her no good.

"We're going to have to get her some medicine!" James freaked out, grabbing onto Jessie and bringing her back to her bed, "Meowth go get some!"

"Why should I get her some?" Meowth protested, before crossing its arms over its chest.

"Cause maybe she won't kill you later for calling her hideous!" James flailed his arms out in the air.

"But-" Meowth stopped realizing that he had a point. Jessie was terrifying if you were ever to insult her.

* * *

"Clemont said that we should make her some soup..." Ash said looking down at the recipe that Clemont gave him before him and Bonnie left, "This shouldn't be too hard... I mean Clemont does it all the time..."

"Pika Pika..." Pikachu sighed. It felt that Ash needed to learn to cook for himself... He's always travelled with a person who did all the cooking for him.

"We need to cut all these vegetables..." Ash eyed the carrots, potatoes and other vegetables lying on the counter. He stroked his chin, an idea coming to his mind, "We can use this time to train too!" He finally said before reaching for two pokeballs attached to his belt, "Come on out you guys!" He said releasing Hawlucha, and Greninja from their pokeballs.

"Cha Hawlucha!" Hawlucha said, curious as to what Ash wanted it to do. Greninja nodded its head, wondering the same thing.

"Alright you guys!" He said clasping his hands together, "Greninja I want you to use cut to peel those vegetables, and Hawlucha I want you to chop them up using Karate Chop!" He commanded his pokemon, "And Pikachu will time you guys to see how fast you can go!"

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu jumped from one foot to the other on the counter, holding onto a stopwatch that it got from Ash's bag.

"3...2...1 ...Go!" Ash said out loud before turning on the element to boil the water. Leave it to Ash to turn cooking into training time.

His pokemon worked diligently as he joined in helping Hawlucha cut up some bite sized potatoes. It didn't occur to any of them that they were chopping up more vegetables than they needed.

"Hehehe~!" Ash stopped hearing a familiar giggle. He placed the knife on the counter, turning around to look around the area. He shrugged his shoulders, thinking that it was probably some girl from outside passing by the window of the pokemon center. A few minutes later, Ash walked over to a cupboard filled with spices picking out what was needed on Clemont's list.

"Hehehe~!" The boy heard another giggle. He closed the cupboard, once again scanning the area. His pokemon were too busy with their task to even notice anything. _I swore I just..._ He shook his head, grabbing the ladle from the counter.

"Ash!" He heard the honey blonde haired girl call out his name.

He turned his head to the right to see Serena standing at the doorway, "Serena? You should be in-" He tried to say, but Serena ran at full speed towards him, holding her arms out to hug him, but instead crashed into him causing the two of them to fall to the floor, "Serena what are you doing!?" He asked in surprised as the girl made herself comfortable on his lap.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu jumped from the counter to the floor to witness the commotion. Greninja and Hawlucha stopped their peeling and chopping to also see if the two were okay.

"You're it~" She said above him, before poking his nose and giving him a sweet smile.

Ash blushed, feeling the adrenaline rush through his veins. The way she was looking at him was making him feel really nervous, "What do you mean I'm it!?" He asked, trying to pull himself up, but Serena's weight was keeping him down.

"We're playing tag silly!" She managed to say through her nasally voice.

"Serena... You're supposed to be resting!" Ash said angrily. He wanted her to feel better as soon as possible, and having her out of bed was going to do the complete opposite, "Hawlucha and Greninja bring Serena back to the room and make sure she stays there!" He instructed.

Greninja used its tongue scarf to grab a hold of the girl.

"But I wanted to play tag!" She whined as Greninja dragged her out of the kitchen.

Ash got up on his feet, turning his head to meet Pikachu's eyes who was sharing the same though as him. Why was Serena acting strange?

* * *

"Why is it so crowded?" Clemont asked holding onto his sister's hand as they tried to maneuver themselves through the busy street.

"I hope its nothing bad..." Bonnie sighed, trying to look pass the people around her to see what's going on. Her height was making it too hard for her to see anything.

"Nenene~" Dedenne climbed its way to Clemont's head, but was also having a hard time seeing anything.

"There's Officer Jenny!" Clemont pointed out with his free hand.

"Great! Let's go ask her!"

The two siblings cut through the crowd of people who were just standing on the streets or trying to walk in the opposite direction.

"Officer Jenny!" Clemont called out to the young officer who was blowing through a whistle, giving commands to her fellow officers.

"Hi there!" She said, watching the two walk up to her.

"If you don't me asking... but what's going on?" Clemont asked.

"There's a parade today." Officer Jenny replied before placing her hands on her hips, "So the entire street is closed."

"How could I forget?!" Clemont said dumbfounded, stroking his chin. It was an event that took place around this time every year, "The Electrifying Parade!" He said out loud.

"You got that right!" Officer Jenny smiled at the boy, "To celebrate all of the electric pokemon who have been helping to power up the city for generations!"

"Well that's great and everything... but we're trying to reach the pharmacy just down the road." Bonnie said pointing in the direction of the street that was filled with covered up floats, and a bunch of people and pokemon who were participating in the parade.

"Oh well... you guys are going to have to go all the way around because all of the inner avenues are closed for the next few hours." Officer Jenny said apologetically.

"That's going to be an hour walk!" Bonnie and Clemont said out loud in unison.

"Nenene~!"

"I'm sorry you guys... I wish I could help, but I have things to do here." She said before pulling her whistle from out of her pocket, "I suggest you get a move on before the pharmacy closes."

"I guess our thirty minute trip is just going to have to be a three hour one..." Clemont said once again grabbing ahold of his sister's hand.

"I hope Serena will be okay..." Bonnie said sadly.

"I'm sure she'll be fine... Ash is there."

* * *

"So the streets are closed huh...? Meowth said to himself, hiding behind a dumpster as he watched Clemont and Bonnie walk away, "I'm not going to take a three hour walk just to get Jessie's medicine..."

It scanned the crowded area that was filled with a few booths for people to buy foods and goods made for the parade. Meowth's eyes stopped, gazing upon a costume of a manetric. _Bingo!_ Meowth sneaked its way over to the booth, and snatched the costume without the owner or anyone around the booth noticing. After properly fitting into the disguise, Meowth sneaked its way past the officers, and began walking in the direction of the pharmacy.

"Whoa there." An officer came up to the suspicious looking electric pokemon, "The parade hasn't started yet. You have to get in line with the others..."

 _Darn..._ Meowth thought to itself as the officer guided it to the rest of the manetric who were all standing in a few lines. Meowth tried the best it could to see pass the other manetric around it. _We're going in the direction of the pharmacy anyways... I could sneak out later..._

* * *

"It's finally done!" Ash said excitedly, before removing the lid from the boiling pot. He took a spoon from the counter, and did a quick taste test. His eyes glistened in happiness, "Mmmm! It tastes great!" He praised himself for the great job he did for cooking his very first meal.

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed happily after taking a little lick from Ash's spoon.

"Let's go give some to Serena!" Ash said, using the ladle to put some into a little bowl. He placed the bowl onto a breakfast tray with a hot cup of tea with honey, and walked back to the room.

"Serena!" He called out, using his hip to open the door all the way as Pikachu stood on his shoulder, "It's time for you to eat." He said as he looked up to see that the entire room was a mess. The blankets and pillows were scattered about, and some of the rooms small pieces of decor have fallen over. He placed the tray of food onto one of the drawers before looking at Greninja and Hawlucha who looked completely tired, "Where did she go?" Ash asked with a slight bit of regret.

"Hawlucha!" Hawlucha pointed to a corner of the room behind one of the night stands.

Ash walked over to the corner of the room to see the honey blonde haired girl sitting on the floor holding her legs to her chest, "Serena... What are you doing on the floor?" He asked kneeling down next to her.

"Ash..." She whimpered, "You wouldn't play tag with me!" She cried out, turning her face to look at the raven haired boy.

"Serena you needed to rest!" Ash said stifling a laugh, falling back onto the floor. The mix of tears and snot dripping from Serena's face was quite entertaining to him, but he was trying his very best to keep a straight face. "You're not going to get any better if you don't get any sleep!"

"But I didn't want to sleep!" She held a fist out in front of her, "I wanted to play tag with you!" She crossed her arms over her chest, "And you rejected me!" She said out loud before crying like a little kid.

Ash has never seen Serena act like that before. He didn't really know what to do.

"Pika Pika..." Pikachu tried to calm the girl down from her loud cries. If she continued any longer, Nurse Joy was probably going to come in ask about all of the commotion.

"I'll play with you later okay...?" Ash said quietly as he rubbed his neck, feeling uncomfortable by the situation he was put in.

"Really?!" Serena's eyes began to glisten with happiness. She wiped a mix of tears and snot onto her fennekin printed pajamas before throwing her entire weight onto Ash, embracing him in a hug.

Ash sat there on the floor in surprise from the girl who was nuzzling her head against his chest. His arms were raised above him out of instinct from the sudden sign of affection, and he wasn't really sure where to place them. He bit his lip, feeling flustered. For the first time, he could smell her scent, and it just smelled like vanilla with a mix of sweetness from all that baking she does. He blushed, slowly placing his arms around her, returning her embrace, "… I'll only play with you if you eat your soup though..." He finally said.

"Deal!" Serena said happily in her nasally voice, being the one to end the hug. She climbed back into her bed as Ash placed the breakfast tray in front of her.

Ash sat next to her on the bed, staring intently at her as she took her first bite.

"Yummy~!" She said before giving Ash a smile, then returning to taking another spoonful of soup.

"I'm glad you like it!" Ash smiled in relief. For a second he thought Serena wouldn't enjoy it at all, "I should cook more often!" Ash said standing up from the bed, holding a fist up into the air.

"Pika Pika..." Pikachu sighed, knowing that its trainer was getting a little too cocky from his first time of cooking.

Ten minutes later, Serena finished her entire bowl of soup, and was ready to go to sleep.

Ash grabbed the tray with empty dishes, and placed them on top of the windowsill before turning to look at Serena who was bobbing her head while sitting on the bed.

"I think she's ready to finally sleep..." Ash whispered to his pokemon.

"Hawlucha cha!" Hawlucha nodded with a look of tiredness in its eyes. She was clearly a handful for Greninja and Hawlucha when Ash was finishing up the soup with Pikachu.

Ash wanted to train them while she was sleeping, but he could tell that all his pokemon, including himself was getting tired from taking care of Serena.

"Ash...?" Serena mumbled his name.

"Yeah Serena?" Ash said, turning around to look at the girl who was tugging on the first button of her shirt, "What is it?"

"It's too hot now..." She mumbled, half asleep, "I need to take off my clothes..." She said as she began unbuttoning her pajama top, revealing the undershirt she was wearing underneath.

"Serena!" Ash's face turned bright red in embarrassment, "Don't take off your clothes!" He stammered.

"But... I'm starting to sweat and I don't like it." She stopped unbuttoning her top to grab onto the hem with her both hands to remove her top in one quick motion. She lifted the shirt pass her belly button, and Ash was quick to jump on top of her as a means to stop her.

"Keep her down"! Ash commanded his pokemon, as greninja, and hawlucha sat on top of the girl as soon as Ash stood up.

"But it's so hot!" She cried out, sweat dripping from her forehead. She was now trying to tug at her waistband, but couldn't do anything cause of the two pokemon who were sitting on top of her.

"I'll go get Nurse Joy to help you!" Ash said underneath his breath. He's never had his heart beat so fast in his entire life.

* * *

"We're finally here!" Bonnie said running towards the pharmacy door.

"Finally..." Clemont said out of breath. The long way just had to involve them walking up a steep hill.

"Oh no!" Bonnie gasped, as she took a firm grip on the metal handle trying her best to pull the door open, "It's not opening!"

"What?!" Clemont rushed over to her sisters side, trying his best to open the door with his own strength, "But why!? This place is open everyday!" He looked beside the stores hours to see a note taped beneath it. _Closed for the parade._

"Closed for the parade!?" Bonnie yelled out in anger, "But we need that medicine now!" She clenched her fists before looking up to her brother, "What are we going to do!?"

"I don't know..." Clemont said sadly, while stroking his chin, "We're just going to have to wait until tomorrow... I guess..."

"But Serena needs that medicine now!"

"But there isn't any other place Bonnie..."

"Are you guys alright?" The two siblings looked up to see Cilan standing in front of them, "You guys look like you're in distress."

"Cilan!" Bonnie's eyes beamed, "What are you doing here!?"

"I was on my way to the parade, but I saw you guys... What's wrong?"

"Serena is sick and the stupid pharmacy is closed!" Bonnie stomped on the ground out of anger.

"I think I can help you guys out..." Cilan said, taking off his backpack, and taking out a small pouch labelled 'First Aid Kit', "I keep a few things in here in case anything like this happens." He pulled out a small plastic vial with a few pills in it, "I think this is what you need." He held the vial out for Clemont, and Bonnie to take.

"Thank you so much!" Clemont praised the connoisseur ready to grab the vial from the palm of his hands.

"That's mine!" Meowth swooped in from out of nowhere, aiming to grab the vial, but missed and fell onto the hard cemented pavement.

"Meowth!?" Bonnie puffed her cheeks in anger as she placed her hands on her hips, "What are you doing here!?" She asked staring at the cat like pokemon who now looked beat up, wearing a completely torn manetric costume.

"And why do you look like that!?" Clemont questioned staring at the sewed manetric head that was missing an eye.

"Forget that, I need that medicine!" Meowth said angrily, discarding what was left of the costume. It just went through a terrible time at the parade. The other manetric were trained to do a dance, and everything's been rehearsed for weeks. Meowth didn't know any moves, and got trampled by the manetric, and when it tried to escape, the floats got in its way and occasionally ran over it. When the crowd found out that Meowth wasn't a real one, the manetric all gave it a great jolt with their thunderbolts. Meowth had an unpleasant time and was in no mood to share anything with anyone, "Give me that!" Meowth jumped towards Cilan ready to grab the vial.

"Why do you need any?!" Bonnie asked grabbing the vial from Cilan's hand and putting into her pouch before Meowth could even touch it.

"Jessie is sick and I need to give her some medicine!"

"It's probably better that way." Cilan joked.

"That's not funny. She looks terrible!" Meowth felt concerned for its teammate, but it felt more concerned about what Jessie was going to do about calling her hideous. She'd do worse things if it doesn't come back with some medicine.

"Why don't you say please?" Bonnie said, staring at Meowth, breaking its thoughts away from Jessie's torture.

"I don't say please to twerps like you..."

"Then you can go back empty handed." Bonnie turned the other way, ready to head back to the pokemon center. Cilan, and Clemont followed her lead.

Visions of an angry Jessie began to overtake Meowth's mind, "Okay. I'm sorry please!" Meowth got on its knees ready to beg.

Bonnie turned around to look at the begging Meowth on the ground, "Okay." She shrugged her shoulders, pulling out a few pills from the vial, "But you have to promise us another thing..."

"What is it!?"

"Team Rocket isn't allowed to bother us for a good two weeks!" Bonnie yelled out, "I don't want to see you anywhere near us fourteen days!"

"I don't know if Jessie and Ja-"

"Two weeks!"

"Fine!"

Bonnie threw a few pills onto Meowth's paw, and the two groups went their separate ways. Neither of them were up for a battle.

* * *

Ash paced himself outside the hallway with his pokemon, waiting for Nurse Joy to finish up with helping Serena. He heard a few thumps, and Nurse Joy using a stern voice on Serena quite a few times. Serena was definitely a handful when she was sick. Still she sounded like she was handling Serena much more better than he ever could.

"She's all changed!" Nurse Joy said after opening the door to their room.

"Thanks Nurse Joy..." Ash said embarrassed, rubbing his nape. He didn't want Nurse Joy – a doctor for pokemon to be helping out his sick friend, especially when she had other more important duties, "I'm so sorry for having to bring you into this..."

"It's alright!" Nurse Joy smiled, "I like helping anyone who needs it." She walked pass the boy and his pokemon, "She's quite a handful though.."

"You got that right." Ash sighed before waving the nurse off, and walking back into the room. He looked at Serena who was sitting on the bed, her legs stretched out with the blanket on top of her.

"Hey Ash..." She said quietly, sniffling, turning her head to look at him, "Can you read me a story?" She asked.

"Uhh... Sure..." He blinked as he watched the girl make herself comfortable on her bed, pulling the blanket up to her neck, "I don't have anything to read to you though..."

"I have a book right here." She pointed to the storybook lying on the night dresser placed between her and Bonnie's bed.

"Okay..." Ash grabbed the book from the dresser before sitting on the chair that was beside the window. His pokemon all made themselves comfortable around the room, interested in hearing Ash read the story, "The Twilight Princess..." He began, reading the cover of the book before opening it to the very first chapter, "Once upon a time there was a young princess named Twyla who lived in the Valley of Stars, a place that has never seen sunlight." Ash looked to the left of the page to see a picture of the princess in her small little town looking up at the sky. He admired the art before hearing a faint little snore coming from behind the book. He lowered the book to see that Serena has fallen asleep. He stood up from the chair and placed the book onto the windowsill before turning around to look at his pokemon who wanted to hear more about the story, "We should let her sleep..." Ash whispered before creeping his way out the room with his pokemon following behind him. He quietly closed the door on his way out and turned around just in time to see Bonnie, Clemont, and Cilan enter the pokemon center.

"Hey guys!" Ash greeted his friends, "What took you so long? It's been hours."

"I think they had a long day..." Cilan chuckled before turning to look at the two who were ready to pass out on the ground.

"That's enough walking for a day..." Bonnie said tiredly before grabbing the small glass vial from her pouch. She tossed the vial in Ash's direction and he caught it between the palms of his hands.

"I think I'd be full of energy if I had something to eat..." Clemont said rubbing his belly, "We didn't even get to eat anything today aside from a few snacks..."

"Dinner would be nice right about now..." Bonnie agreed.

"I guess I'll start on some dinner for you guys." Cilan said as the two siblings fell to the couches in the lobby. Cilan chuckled before heading towards the kitchen.

Ash felt like he was ready to pass out too, but he knew that he still had a duty to give Serena her medicine. He watched as his pokemon crowded around Bonnie, and Clemont, making themselves comfortable before falling asleep next to them.

Ash walked back into their sleeping quarters, reluctant to wake Serena up after she had just fallen asleep. He walked over to her bed, taking a seat on her bedside before lightly tugging on her shoulder, "Serena...?" He said quietly, "It's time for you to take your medicine."

Serena slightly opened her eyes, giving them a small rub before sitting up and turning her head to her left to see Ash. She was half asleep, taking the pill from Ash's palm, and gulping it down with the now cold honey tea that Ash handed to her.

"Thanks..." She mumbled before returning to sleep.

Ash smiled happy to see that his friend was going to feel better soon. He stood up from the bed ready to leave the room once again.

"Ash...?" He heard Serena's voice whisper weakly as he felt her tugging at the hem of his shirt.

"Yeah Serena...? He raised an eyebrow hoping that she wasn't going to jump on him again.

"Will you stay here with me while I sleep?" She asked, letting go of his shirt.

"Uhm... Sure..." He replied shyly, once again taking his seat on the bed.

He blushed as she grabbed his hand, holding onto it as she slowly drifted off into dream land.

"You're an amazing guy Ash..." She said in her sleep, and Ash turned his head to look at her.

"Huh...?" He questioned his eyes widening by her sudden compliment.

"You're so kind, and you care about everyone else around you more than yourself..." She continued on mumbling, "...You're so motivated, and positive..."

Ash's bit his lip feeling embarrassed by Serena's sudden need to praise him, "Clemont... and Bonnie... and Cilan are the same way..." He said knowing that she probably wasn't hearing a single word that he was saying.

"I guess that's why I like you so much..." Serena finally said before fully dozing off.

"What?" Ash jumped up from the bed, letting go of Serena's hand. His face flushed, as he felt the adrenaline pumping throughout his veins. He could feel his heart beat a million times faster, and that weird gushy feeling spreading throughout his body. He still had no idea as to what was going on, but her saying that she liked him was driving him crazy. He stared at the honey blonde haired girl, biting his lip. She looked different to him, and he didn't know why. She looked much more appealing in a way he couldn't understand...

* * *

"Is it working?" James asked after administering the medicine to Jessie.

Meowth and James stood above the red haired woman, staring at her as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Is that you Meowth..." She said, her vision blurry.

"Yes it is!" Meowth said, staring at the woman who began blinking her eyes several times.

"That's good..." She said quietly before widening her eyes. Her sight was back to normal, "Because I'm going to pummel you for calling me hideous!" She said with her regular voice, standing up from the bed with her usual amount of energy.

"Oh good she's back to normal!" James said in complete happiness.

"I don't think I like it..." Meowth said with shaky legs.

"Come here you!" Jessie held up a fist, ready to chase the feline pokemon.

"You were hideously beautiful!" Meowth tried, but only made the situation worse.

"I'll show you hideously beautiful!" Jessie barked as she began chasing Meowth around the room.

* * *

Serena opened her eyes, feeling her forehead. She didn't feel terribly hot like before, and her fingers were no longer trembling. She sat up from the bed feeling perfectly fine. She turned to look at the clock to see that it almost 9PM. No one else was in the room yet, so she got out of bed, and headed towards the dining area. She peaked her head through the door to see everyone at the table eating a late dinner.

"Good morning Serena!" Clemont greeted once again filled with energy. "Or maybe I should say Good evening."

"I feel much better!" Serena said taking a seat next to Ash at the table.

"Ash tells us that you're quite a handful when you're sick." Cilan laughed, and the others were quick to join him.

Serena's face turned red, "Yeah... my mom tells me I'm kind of crazy when I'm sick..." She said embarrassed before turning to look at Ash, "Thanks for taking care of me..."

"No problem!" Ash said avoiding any kind of eye contact with the girl sitting beside him. He felt uncomfortable by what she said in her sleep.

 _And so Ash and his friends had a long and tiring day, but filled with new and funny memories. Ash experienced a whole new side to Serena, and definitely did not want to experience again... not alone anyways, and even got to learn a few things about how Serena views him... Will this affect his relationship with Serena?... As the journey continues!_

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Twilight Princess:** Serena gets asked to be the star of the play Twilight Princess by an old man named Dinkle, as he seems to run into some problems with his current actors. Serena's friends convince her to take the role while the others help behind the scenes. After seeing Ash's and Serena's chemistry off set, Dinkle wants to make Ash the prince of the play making Serena nervous as she knows that the prince, and princess kiss at the end of the story. Meanwhile, James from Team Rocket looks like an exact duplicate of an actor from the play, and is forced to take his role as Jessie views it as a perfect opportunity to swipe Pikachu.


	4. Twilight Princess

**TO: justanaverageguy & MysteryG13** : Thank you guys for the the support (and everyone else), but I'm sorry to say that it won't be revolving around Princess Twilight from the Legend of Zelda games. I would have loved to make the chapter based on the game, but I've never played that one, and I wouldn't want to ruin it for you guys with my lack of knowledge about the game. I hope you guys aren't too disappointed about the chapter. :(

* * *

 **Summary:** Serena's gets asked to be the star of the play Twilight Princess by an old man named Dinkle, as he seems to run into some problems with his current actors. Serena's friends convince her to take the role while the others help behind the scenes. After seeing Ash's and Serena's chemistry off set, Dinkle wants to make Ash the prince of the play making Serena nervous as she knows that the prince, and princess kiss at the end of the story. Meanwhile, James from Team Rocket looks like an exact duplicate of an actor from the play, and is forced to take his role as the actor as they witness him quit on the spot.

* * *

 **EP 04: Twilight Princess**

"Twilight Princess!?" Serena exclaimed, staring at a giant billboard sign advertising a play, "Can we check it out?" She asked clasping her hands together before turning to look at Cilan, giving her best shot at the puppy dog face, "It's my favorite story ever!"

"I want to check it out too!" Bonnie chimed in excitedly, "Oh pretty please!" Bonnie got on her knees, begging her brother.

"Nenene~!"

"It's up to Cilan..." Clemont said staring at his sister. She was begging the wrong person.

"I wouldn't mind checking it out..." Ash said, using his index finger to rub his cheek. He recognized the title, but couldn't exactly remember where, "What is it about Serena?" He asked turning his focus to the honey blonde haired girl.

"Pika Pika?"

"It's about this Princess who lives in a kingdom that's never seen daylight. She reads a tonne of books about another place that has light, but is told that they are just fairy tales." Serena took a step forward, her eyes resting upon the princess on the billboard, "One day she comes across a pokemon she's never seen before. A solrock that gives her a vision of a place that bathes beneath the suns rays all day. She then embarks on a journey to find the place, and eventually meet's the Prince from the kingdom that has never seen night, and the two fall in love..." Serena sighed, envious about the spark between the characters when they first come into contact. Serena's lips then curved downwards into a frown thinking about the antagonist of the story, "… But then..." She continued, "the Prince and Princess get into some trouble when an evil warlock tries to keep them apart so he could rule over both kingdoms."

"What happens to them!?" Bonnie was clearly intrigued by the story.

"You're going to have to watch the play to find out!" Serena winked.

"Ooooh..." Bonnie groaned, crossing her arms over her chest, "Not fair..."

"I guess we can stay here in Lumiose for another few days." Cilan said stroking his chin. He was staring at the billboard that had a picture of the Princess with her Lunatone basking in the moonlight, staring at the stars. The small portion of the sky in the top left corner transitioned into an orange and yellow like tone, mimicking the colors of a sunset, with the sun just peaking in. "The play might offer something interesting I can hand in to Valerie..."

"Yay!" Bonnie and Serena said ecstatically in unison.

 _After being in Lumiose City for a few weeks, the group of heroes were dying to travel to some other place, but weren't very sure as to where to go. Cilan felt that he was ready to hand in his "Inspiration Book" to Valerie filled with patterns, and interesting pictures, and decided that it was time for him to be on his way to Laverre City. Cilan invited Ash and his friends to join him on his journey, and so they agreed, leaving just that morning._

* * *

"Wow this place is amazing! I wonder what the theatre will look like! " Serena said in awe as she twirled around the spacious lobby admiring her surroundings. The place was inspired by the intricate patterns and décor from the Victorian Era.

"Ohh... what am I going to do...?" An old man muttered underneath his breath, walking anxiously pass the group of heroes. He was so caught up in his own little thoughts he didn't notice his arm slightly bump into the twirling girl causing her to lose her footing.

Serena blinked, the sudden contact made her lose her rhythm. She instinctively closed her eyes, ready to brace herself for the fall.

"Are you alright?" Ash asked Serena who just saved her from falling onto the cold marble flooring.

Serena opened her eyes blinking a few times. "I'm..." She began, feeling Ash's arm around her waist. She didn't even feel him grab a hold of her when she was seconds away from falling, "I'm fine!" She squeaked, before removing herself from Ash's grasp.

"Okay..." Ash replied staring at the girl in wonder. Her face was suddenly red as a tamato berry, "You should watch where you're going!" Ash averted his attention to the old man in anger.

"Ohh.." The old man turned around, facing the group of friends. He was short, thin, and seemed rather frail. He was pale white, and had gray hair – or a lack of it. He had a scraggly looking beard and wore round framed glasses. He was wearing a white collared shirt with suspenders, and brown trousers that stopped just above his ankles, revealing his red socks he wore underneath his black dress shoes, "I'm terribly sorry!" He tried, waving his hands in front of him, "I didn't mea-" He stopped mid sentence, his eyes resting upon the honey blonde haired girl, "Yo-you're perfect!" He hesitated before rushing over to Serena, walking circles around her as he stroked his chin.

"Excuse me...?" Serena said quietly, clasping her hands to her chest, feeling uncomfortable in her current state.

"This is sudden, and pardon me for asking..." The man said as he came to a stop, "Will you be the star of my play? Just for opening night?"

"What?"

"Opening night for Twilight Princess is in two days and my actress to play Princess Twyla broke her leg!" The man sobbed breaking down in front of Serena and her friends, " My understudy has gotten the flu that's been going around and I just don't know what to do!" He cried out, grabbing onto the black beret that was on his head, scrunching it between his two hands.

"Wait..." Ash began, the old man's words were still processing into his mind, "You need someone to star as the princess in twilight princess...?"

"Yes..." The old man sniffled, wiping a tear that barely left his eye.

"You should do it Serena!" Ash turned to face Serena, encouraging her.

"But I'm not an actress..." Serena said with modesty.

"He said it's only going to be for opening night!" Bonnie said as the old man profusely nodded his head at Serena, snot dripping down his nose. "Look at him he needs the help!"

"You probably already memorized all of the lines by heart..." Clemont added, "You did say it was your favorite story..."

"But I-"

"Serena IT'S your favorite story!" Ash repeated Clemont's words as he met her blue eyes. "How awesome would it be to be the star in your favorite story?!"

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed, holding its fist up into the air in determination.

"Okay... I guess I could give you a hand..." Serena finally gave in.

* * *

"We must have hit a fortune!" Meowth's eyes beamed with happiness, "The boss will surely give us a raise if we capture all of these pokemon for him!"

The Team Rocket gang somehow managed to sneak into the back of the theatre where all of the cast and crew members were putting together the last minute touches on the play. They were drawn to the large amount of dark type pokemon that were patiently standing in a line, waiting to enter the costume fitting room.

"Just think of all of the money we will get!" James remarked, using his index finger to count the amount of pokemon down the hall.

"Better yet, think of all the praise!" Giovanni's voice echoed through Jessie's ears. She could just endlessly hear him compliment her and her teammates for their amazing job.

"Marco! I thought you were sick!" A man holding a clipboard spotted James' head peeking through the curtains they were using as a cover, "Dinkle is gonna be happy to know that you're doing okay!" He grabbed Jame's arm, dragging him out to walk with him along the hallway, "They are doing a dress rehearsal. Why don't you go over your script in your dressing room?"

"Pardon me...?" James blinked, confused by the strangers actions of treating him like a friend.

"And when did you dye your hair?" The man questioned eying the periwinkle color, "I thought you weren't going to dye your hair for the show?"

"What are you talking about? This is my natural hair color!"

"That's the spirit! Get into your character!"

Jessie stared at the man leading James down another hallway, "Why did he take James from us?"

"Because of that!" Meowth pointed to a poster promoting the play.

Jessie turned her head in the direction that Meowth pointed out, seeing the poster. It wasn't like the billboard. It was just a man that looked exactly like James, dressed in a bunch of wizardry attire, with a sinister look on his face. They looked like twins right to the bone.

"That's..." Jessie trailed off surprised by the lack of differences between the two men.

"Freaky..." Meowth finished her sentence, with a shiver creeping down its spine.

"But maybe... it might work to our advantage..."

* * *

After our heroes briefly gave their introductions to Dinkle, and vice versa, each one of them offered their assistance to Dinkle if he needed any extra help on set. Cilan was off to fix the costumes to fit Serena, Clemont of course went to help out with the stage effects, Bonnie went to help out the pokemon, and Ash was set off to finish any of the unfinished props.

"That's perfect my dear Serena!" Dinkle praised his amateur performer who just practiced the very first scene. "You memorized those lines incredibly fast!"

"Thank you so much." Serena mumbled, her face turning a rosy shade of pink. She's never really acted before so she was feeling a tad bit nervous. Dinkle was making her feel much more comfortable with it. She turned her focus to lunatone who was going to be in almost every scene with her, "I think I'll do just fine with you around!"

"Luna..." Lunatone slightly glowed, showing its fondness towards Serena.

"Perfect?! That was terrible!" A man yelled out angrily. He was tall with a sturdy built, with blonde hair, and green eyes. He stomped his way over to Dinkle, his middle and forefinger rubbing up against his temple, "I am not working with an amateur! I mean how old is she...?!"

"Skye please... It will only be for opening night!" Dinkle tried, the sweat dripping from his forehead.

"I'll look like her older brother!" Skye yelled out, "I quit! I only agreed to the play if Ana was cast for the role, and she isn't!" He stomped towards a set of doors, making a dramatic exit.

Serena held her hands up to her chest, staring at Dinkle whose expression quickly shifted from joyous to gloomy.

"Let's take a break..." Dinkle sighed, walking away from the stage.

Serena rolled the script in her hands and walked down the set of stairs, taking the first seat closest to her in the giant auditorium. She could tell that Dinkle must have been having a hard time during the production, and it made her want to put on an even more successful show for his sake. She couldn't even enjoy how extravagant the theatre looked. There were drawings carved into the walls that she was dying to examine, but she just wasn't in the mood. Skye's need to call her acting terrible wasn't helping either.

"I think you did great Serena..." Ash said taking a seat next to her. He placed the prop he was working on, on the seat next to him before giving his full attention to Serena.

Serena turned her head to see Ash giving her a smile, and of course Pikachu perched up on Ash's shoulder doing the same.

"Thanks Ash..." She managed to say, but still with a disheartened look on her face.

Ash stared at the girl, having a need to cheer her up, "Serena you enjoy that story... and you're given a chance to act in it!" He finally said, "You should have fun with it! You're not a professional actor, but who cares!? You should enjoy being the star of the play!"

"Pikapi!"

He placed his hand over Serena's that was resting on the hand rest. She moved her eyes to his hand that was almost interlocking around her fingers. She could feel the material of his glove on the back of her hand, and his fingers resting on top of hers. _He's almost holding my hand..._ She thought to herself as she felt her body get warmer. She swore that Ash was being much more affectionate than before, but it was probably nothing.

"Hey Ash?" She began in a warm, calming tone, "Thank you for taking care of me when I was sick." She met his eyes, smiling at him.

"Oh... that? It was nothing..." Ash chuckled remembering what Serena said to him when she had fallen asleep. He moved his hand away from hers, feeling the blood rushing throughout his veins. " _You're an amazing guy Ash..." … "I guess that's why I like you so much..."_ Ash uncontrollably shook his head, his face turning bright red. He couldn't stop thinking about what she told him ever since she said it. He tried his best to ignore it but it was doing him no good.

"I'm sorry if I said anything weird..." Serena said shyly, "You know when I was much younger... my mom would read Twilight Princess to me whenever I got sick." She began, turning her gaze to the stage, "There was this one part at the end of the story where the princess confesses her love to the prince, and my mom told me that I have developed this habit where I confess my love to her... or even my stuffed animals whenever I'm ready to fall asleep." She turned her eyes back to Ash who was just looking at her, "If I did something like that... I'm sorry if it upset you or anything..."

"No~" Ash stammered waving his hands out in front of him, "You didn't confess your love to me or any stuff animals lying around the room!" He lied, "You just mumbled about how much you loved...cheese." He felt relieved, but also disappointed.

"Oh..." Serena laughed, "Well I guess that's a new one. I'm confessing my love to food." She laughed even harder realizing how bizarre that was.

"Yeah..." Ash joined in, "You are quite a handful to take care of!" Ash admitted, "It took both Hawlucha and Greninja just to keep you in one spot!"

"Even Rhyhorn couldn't keep me down!"

"This is great!" Dinkle interrupted the conversation going on between the two friends.

Ash and Serena turned their attention towards Dinkle, hovering above them on the stage.

"Ash... Will you be the prince for my play!?" Dinkle asked, ready to get on his knees if he had to.

"Huh?" Ash blinked wondering why Dinkle would ask him to take the lead. He knew nothing about Princess Twilight.

"Watching you guys talk... you seem to have the chemistry I want to see between the stars of the play." Dinkle admitted.

"Well If it puts less stress on you... then I'm in!" Ash stood up from his chair, raising his fist above him in determination. He turned his head to look down at Serena, "Now you don't have anything to worry about Serena! We'll be acting together!" He said.

Serena's eyes widened, staring at Ash as he ran onto the stage to receive a copy of the script from Dinkle. Serena flipped through the pages of her own copy knowing that there was going to be something going on between the two characters... She stopped on the very last page reading one of the last few lines, _Princess Twyla leans in giving Prince Heathran a passionate kiss on the lips._ She bit her lip, placing the script down on her lap. _I get to kiss Ash..._

* * *

"You get to be the prince of the play!?" Bonnie said dumbfounded, "I wish I got a role in the play too! If I wasn't too busy playing with the zorua's maybe Dinkle would have cast me as the Prince!"

"I think you're too small... and a girl." Clemont teased before chuckling through his mouthful of rice.

"I guess that means I'd have to fix up the costumes to fit you too..." Cilan said before taking a swig of his tea, "My sewing skills better be good enough for Valerie when we reach Laverre City!"

"I'm sure they will!" Ash said through a mouthful of rice and egg and vegetables.

"I sure hope so..." Cilan said before turning his attention to the honey blonde haired girl whose plate of food has barely been touched, "Are you okay Serena? You haven't been saying or eating much."

"Oh I'm fine!" Serena broke away from her thoughts of feeling Ash's lips against hers, "I'm just worried I won't be memorizing my lines! The show is in two days, and we barely had the time to practice!"

"You know your lines much better than Ash and he's not worrying about it..." Clemont said trying to soothe the girls worries.

"Yeah but still..." Serena bit her lip, feeling flustered.

"Is it because of the kiss?" Bonnie teased, that devilish look appearing on her face.

"Wh-What?! N-N-No!" Serena stammered, crossing her arms over her chest. She's been blushing all day just thinking about kissing Ash, and now she was feeling completely lightheaded.

"What kiss?" Ash asked, pounding on his chest as he swallowed the large portion of food he stuffed into his mouth.

"You're playing a lead role, and you don't even know about the kiss that happens at the end of the story?" Cilan asked, handing Ash his copy of the script.

"That's Ash for you..." Clemont said laughing as Ash flipped through the pages to see that he had to interlock his lips with Serena for at least ten seconds.

"To be honest..." Ash began rather embarrassed, "I've only been reading my lines..."

"Of course you have..." Bonnie said with a lack of surprise.

"I have so much to memorize! Of course I'm just going to read my parts!"

"Typical Ash..." Bonnie shrugged her shoulders as dedenne climbed to the top of her head, mimicking her actions, and tone.

"Well it's just a kiss... I'm sure it won't be that big of a deal..." Ash finished off as he continued to eat the rest of his food.

Serena sighed, staring at the raven haired boy. Maybe it wasn't a big deal to him, but it was a huge deal to her.

* * *

"This is great!" Jessie said with a sly expression on her face.

"What is?" James asked as he slouched down onto the grass, feeling tired from the demands of being a 'famous actor'.

"Meowth and I did some research when you were busy with your rehearsals..." Jessie said, handing James a small copy of the poster her and Meowth saw earlier on the wall.

"I was the only one doing the research..." Meowth mumbled. Jessie was quick to shoot a glare at her feline companion.

"Who is this man, and why is he trying to look as handsome as me!?" James questioned as he sat up straight to get a better view of the man's face.

"His name is Marco Van Polo, and he's famous for doing a tonne of plays!" Jessie said as she handed James another piece of paper, this time with a picture of Marco without the fancy costume, and makeup. The only difference now was that he had brown hair.

"That's why that man was treating me like I was his friend!" James said with realization.

"Exactly! And I know how to make this work to our advantage!"

* * *

 _~Two Days Later~_

Serena paced herself behind the lavish red curtains, her heart racing at the speed of light. They've been rehearsing nonstop the last two days, and Ash has managed to memorize every single line perfectly without any problems. Dinkle did not want them to kiss during the rehearsals as he wanted the moment to be captured like first lovers during opening night... and here they were opening night, ready to act out the last scene.

"Are you okay Serena?" Ash asked, watching the girl fiddle with her fingers as she continued pacing herself around the area, "You're getting much more tense with each act..."

"I'm fine!" She said with a high pitched voice, "I'm just... nervous..."

"About what?" Ash stared at her, "You've been doing so good... what's wrong...?"

"Well I-" She closed her eyes for a brief second as she took a deep breath, "We have to kiss Ash... and it's making me nervous." She admitted quietly.

Ash didn't really understand as to why Serena has been obsessing over the kiss, "Why is it bothering you so much?" He asked.

"I've never kissed a boy before..." Serena admitted shyly, fiddling with her fingers, "It's a big deal to me. The first kiss is the one you will always remember!"

Ash scratched the back of his head, still not understanding Serena's words and the importance behind a kiss, "Well... I've never kissed anyone either if that makes you feel better..."

"It doesn't bother you one bit...?" Serena questioned, raising an eyebrow. She always thought a first kiss was a huge thing for everyone. Maybe she was wrong.

"Well I guess it kind of bothered me when I first found out..." He paused, stroking his chin, "But then I thought... it's with you, and that's all that matters." He continued before realizing what he just said.

"You guys need to get into your positions!" Bonnie peeked her head from around the corner, "Did you not hear the lady that's been walking around with a microphone headset all night!?"

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu said wrapped around Bonnie's arms, as Dedenne rested on top of her head.

"Sorry! We're coming!" Serena bowed down apologetically before rushing her way over to her place on the stage. _Did Ash just say he wanted his first kiss to be with me...?_

* * *

"Twyla!" Ash called out to Serena who was lying unconsciously on the center of the stage. The spotlight on her as lunatone hovered above her.

Ash kneeled down to the floor, taking Serena in his arms. "Heathran... is that you?" Serena asked weakly, recovering from the events that just happened in the last scene, "You're okay?"

"All because of you..." Ash said his line perfectly, as he embraced Serena in a hug, "You defeated the evil warlock Zantu!" Ash ended their embrace as he turned his gaze to Lunatone and Solrock, "With the help of these two of course!"

"You helped too..." Serena said.

"By getting myself locked up in a cage..." Ash chuckled perfectly saying his lines, "It was all you Twyla, and now our kingdoms can come together and live in peace!" He said averting his attention to the mesmerized crowd.

"And we can finally be together..." Serena whispered before Ash gave her a nod.

Serena inhaled quietly. _This is it..._ She thought to herself as she wrapped her arms around Ash's neck, ready to kiss him on the lips. She leaned in as Ash did the same the space between them getting smaller and smaller. She closed her eyes, ready to experience her first kiss, as they both instinctively tiled their heads.

"Not so fast!" They heard a voice sound from behind them.

The two opened their eyes, turning their heads to see the evil warlock standing high above them on a platform.

Serena and Ash looked at each other confused by the sudden turn of events.

"This isn't in the script!" Dinkle said to himself as he watched "Marco" once again share his presence on the stage, "What is Marco doing!? He was supposed to be gone in the last scene!"

The two heroes stood up, turning their bodies to face the warlock who seemed to have come back from being supposedly vanquished to the under realm.

"What's going on?" Serena whispered to Ash as the spotlight moved towards the revived warlock.

They watched as Zantu the evil one, removed his costume, revealing the one and only James from Team Rocket in his normal team rocket attire.

"Team Rocket!?" Ash gasped, "What are you doing here!?"

"Prepare for trouble we've come to ruin the show!" Jessie's voice was heard before she was seen descending on a platform that came from above.

"And make it double, I have a twin you know!" James added, as the two platforms were now at the same level, the spotlights shining on the two villains.

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all peoples within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"

"Meowth that's right!" Meowth appeared from out of nowhere, joining the scene.

"What are you guys doing here!?" Ash called out, ready to battle.

There were whispers, and gasps being heard amongst the crowd. They weren't sure if this was apart of the play or something that was actually happening on the stage.

"I'm not going to leave without making my debut as an actor in the theatre." Jessie remarked with a twinkle in her eye, "As short as it may be... we must be on our way!"

"Pikachu!" Ash called out for his buddy who should have been scurrying its way to the stage to help its trainer who was in need.

"Pikachu is coming with us!" Jessie mocked as a few of the fake trees on the right side of the stage fell over to reveal Pikachu trapped in a glass cage, and all of the pokemon who were apart of the play uncomfortably trapped in a larger, separate one beside Pikachu.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu called out, its cheeks charged with electricity. It already tried a bunch of times to use thunderbolt to free itself, but it wasn't happening.

"Errr..." Ash gritted through his teeth. Both Serena and Ash have left their pokeballs in the changing rooms.

"Lunatone, Solrock!" Serena called out to the psychic/rock type pokemon who were on stage, still confused by what was going on, "Will you help us out!?" Serena asked. The two pokemon drifted their way to the pair ready to help out.

"Gourgeist!" Jessie yelled out, throwing her pokeball into the air releasing her pumpkin pokemon, "Use shadow ball!"

"Inkay! Join the fray!" James did the same thing, "And use psybeam!"

"Dodge it!" Serena, and Ash called out in unison as the two pokemon drifted high above the stage avoiding the attacks.

"Use stone edge on gourgeist!" Ash instructed, clearly remembering the moves that solrock has been using during the entirety of the play.

Solrock was quick to obey. The sharpened stones ascended from below sending a critical hit towards gourgeist. Gourgeist fell back from the impact, crashing into its red-headed trainer.

"Inkay use psybeam!" James said angrily staring at his companion who fell off the platform and onto the wooden flooring of the stage. Inkay sent an array straight at solrock, damaging its opponent.

"Are you okay!?" Ash asked the pokemon who was knocked back from the attack.

"Solrock!" Solrock was determined to get rid of the trio who was ruining the show.

"Meowth take the pokemon away!" Jessie commanded, rubbing her butt as she stood up from the stage with her gourgeist floating beside her.

A crane suddenly appeared from nowhere, lifting the pokemon from the ground, their cries for help being heard from within the confined space.

"Lunatone use confusion!" Serena commanded her partner for the show as the glass cage lifted higher above the ground with each second passing by.

Lunatone aimed its attack on inkay, confusing the poor squid like pokemon.

"In-Inkay...~" Inkay swayed back and forth.

"Oh no Inkay!" James called out, "Use psybeam on that wretched moon!"

Inkay tried its best to aim its attack at its opponent, but failed as its psybeam hit gourgeist instead.

"What do you think you're doing James!?" Jessie yelled out in anger.

"It's not my fault that Inkay is confused!"

"Solrock use tackle on the crane!" Ash commanded thinking that it was the perfect time to free the pokemon since Team Rocket hit a snag.

"Solrock!" Solrock charged towards the crane, hitting it and causing the crane to lose hold of the glass container. The cage fell to the ground, breaking in the process and freeing all of the pokemon.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu called out, still trapped in its tiny container.

A small group of zorua that were trapped in the cage helped out the mouse-like pokemon freeing it from its cage.

"I think it's time for us to leave..." Meowth called out, jumping back onto the stage, warning his teammates who were now arguing with one another.

"Pikachu!" Ash called out to his favorite companion as he held his arms out. He grabbed onto Pikachu, giving it a short embrace before the electric pokemon returned to its rightful place on Ash's shoulder.

"Let's finish this up~" Ash and Serena once again said in unison, standing side by side, "Use stone edge!" They instructed the moon and sun pokemon.

"Uh oh..." Jessie said, realizing that it wasn't a good time to argue.

A huge wave of rocks hit the trio sending them high above the stage.

"Pikachu! Use thunderbolt!" Ash instructed, pointing at Team Rocket.

Pikachu ran up Ash's arm, jumping off the tip of his finger and sending an electrifying wave towards the villains. The attack broke through the materials used for the ceiling, and sent Team Rocket straight up, high into the sky.

"We're blasting off again!" They screamed out, their voices dissipating.

The crowd behind them cheered, enjoying the twist of events that just occurred. For a second Ash and Serena completely forgot that they were in a play. They turned around as they watched the people cheer, and clap.

The pokemon stood around them, smiling at the duo thankful for their heroic actions.

Serena stared at the crowd, and then to Dinkle who giving them an applause. She turned to look at Ash who was waving, astonished by the amount of people cheering them on.

 _The kiss..._ Serena thought to herself, remembering that she was supposed to kiss Ash. She took a step towards Ash, took a deep breath, and leaned in, kissing him on the cheek.

Ash could feel his cheeks burn up as he turned his attention to Serena, who just gave him a smile.

The curtains closed in front of them, signaling the end of the play.

* * *

"Thank you so much for all of your help!" Dinkle thanked the group of heroes, "I wish you could stay for the rest of the shows, but I do understand you have to get a move on."

"Yeah..." Ash said scratching his head, "I enjoyed being an actor, but I do enjoy being a trainer much more..."

"Pi-Pikachu!"

"You know Serena... You're a natural." Dinkle began, "If you ever want to get your acting career started, just give me a call!"

"He's right... You were pretty good." Skye came from behind Dinkle, "I'm sorry for calling your acting terrible." He apologized before turning his attention to the director, "And I'm sorry for being a pain."

"It's alright Skye... I understand that you were just feeling stressed out."

"I thought of a way to work Ana's broken leg to the play..." Skye said, "All thanks to these two and their improvisation with what was it... Team Rocket?"

"Let's not talk about them..." Serena said out of breath.

"Well I guess you youngin's should be off to Laverre City then... I have a show to fix up!" Dinkle said with determination.

 _And so the group of heroes waved the old director goodbye, happy to have met yet another new friend on their journey. Serena and Ash were both able to experience acting in a play, and both had a wonderful time sharing the stage with one another. Serena just about had her first kiss with Ash... but who knows, maybe she will actually kiss him on the lips in the future... as the journey continues!_

"I thought I told Meowth to leave us alone for two weeks!" Bonnie said out loud in anger.

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

Under the Cherry Blossom Tree: To end off the years Pokemon Performing competition, each contestant and their friends are invited to a celebration party for all their hard work located in Laverre City (What a coincidence! Our heroes are headed that way!) The celebration will be a two day event that will be filled with challenging events! Things go awry for Serena though when she runs into someone whose bullied her when she was much younger – a boy named Calem who also happens to be another assistant for Valerie, and apparently now claims to have a huge crush on Serena!

* * *

 **TO: MysteryG13** (another message for you, you must be special hahah): Since you requested to have Ash jealous for another chapter I've altered my current next set of events to fit your request! I hope you look forward to it!

 **TO: Pokefan 87** : I put a summary at the beginning of each chapter, and then a summary at the end for the next chapter, so it will always be different. Just in case you kinda got confused there.

Anywho, feedback and requests are always appreciated! :)


	5. Under The Cherry Blossom Tree

I'm gonna assume that everyone else on the site is having the same issue as me... I can't see my reviews! I can see them in my email, but unfortunately not every review gets sent to my email so I couldn't read a few :( . Hopefully they fix it soon!

 **TO PurimPopoie:** Thanks so much! It makes me happy to know that my stories make someone else happy too! I am aiming for cute with these :)

 **TO MysteryG13 (you again! haha) & doc boy: **I do plan on something much better for the kiss, so I am going to tease you maybe a few more times. ;) haha jk, but maybe at least one more time!

 **TO blizzard21:** don't worry I do have plans for a jealous Serena... it wouldn't be fair if Ash was the jealous one all the time.

& thats the end to my socializing on this website for the chapter. Enjoy! Thank you to everyone who left reviews for chapter 4. It currently seems to be the best chapter (based on what you guys say). woohoo!

* * *

 **Summary:** To end off the years Pokemon Performing competition, each contestant and their friends are invited to a celebration party for all their hard work located in Laverre City (What a coincidence! Our heroes are headed that way!) The celebration will be go on for two days and will be filled with challenging events! Things go awry for Serena though when she runs into someone who's bullied her when she was much younger – a boy named Calem who also happens to be another assistant for Valerie, and apparently now claims to have a huge crush on Serena!

* * *

 **EP 05: Under the Cherry Blossom Tree**

"Ta-da!" Shauna and Miette walked down the small plight of stairs that led them to the quaint waiting room that separated the rooming situation between the males and females for the duration of the event, "What do you guys think?" The two girls twirled around enjoying the colors of their summer kimonos. Shauna was wearing a plain lilac colored kimono with white trim and a few white lilies printed near the hem. Miette was wearing a light blue one with a darker blue trim, and bluebells nicely patterned throughout the fabric.

"You guys look great!" Ash said to the two girls, envious of the cool designs the girls got to wear. Him and the rest of the boys were wearing plain dark colored ones.

 _On the way to Laverre City, Serena got an invitation to an upcoming end of the year pokemon performers event. Luckily for them, they were close by, and soon enough they were united with some of their friends that they met along their journey. Our heroes arrived at the Laverre City Gym (where the event was being held) not too long ago and were each given a kimono to wear that was designed by the one and only Valerie, the Laverre City Gym Leader._

"How about me!?" Bonnie walked to the group wearing a yellow kimono, patterned with red daisies.

"You look great Bonnie." Clemont complimented his sister, happy to see her enjoying her time as dedenne and pikachu scurried around her in circles.

"Nenene~!"

"Where's Serena?" Trevor asked, looking past the two girls.

"Coming!" Serena walked down the set of stairs before turning one eighty degrees, "What do you guys think?" She was wearing a light pink summer kimono with pink trim, and cherry blossom print. Her hair was up in a small bun that was being held by a chery blossom pin, trying to keep all the pieces of her short hair in place. Every other piece that wasn't being held by the pin was framing the shape of her face.

Ash widened his eyes feeling his heart once again skip a bit. He was starting to get used to the sudden change of pace whenever he laid his eyes on her.

"You look stunning Serena!" Tierno complimented, kneeling down in front of Serena before grabbing a hold of her hand and kissing it, "You are a pokemon performer, I should have known that you'd come out looking so... breathtaking!"

"What's that supposed to mean!?" Miette and Shauna crossed their arms over their chest as they glared down at Tierno, "We're performers too!"

"You guys look great too, it's just-" Tierno began, feeling the sweat drip down from his forehead.

"Just what!?" Shauna and Miette were ready to smack Tierno on his head.

Serena laughed, moving aside to stand next to Ash. She did not want to get in the middle of whatever Miette and Shauna were planning to do.

Ash leaned in close to the honey blonde haired girl who was clearly entertained by her friends, "You look... really pretty Serena..." He whispered shyly into her ear.

Serena's cheeks turned a rosy shade of pink as she slightly turned her head to meet Ash's eyes, "Thank you Ash..."

* * *

What was once a plain field with a fashion runway was now themed after a traditional tea garden inspired by the Kanto and Johto regions. Just ahead of the participants was a path laid out with a few stones that led to a small red wooden bridge that hovered over a stream of water that was being inhabited by a bunch of goldeen's. Serena walked over to the bridge hearing everyone else behind her sigh in awe as they took in the captivating scenery. Ahead of them were a bunch of trees nicely placed about the area with threads of light peeking through the small spaces between the branches and the leaves. A plethora of bushes that were nicely trimmed also filled up the area with some of them nicely shaped into pokemon that mostly resided in Kanto or Johto. Past the area filled with shrubbery art was another path that eventually led everyone to an open field with a giant cherry blossom tree standing strong in the center with Monsieur Pierre and Valerie standing beneath it. Around the field were a bunch of low rectangular tables, with cushions laid around them as chairs for people to sit on.

"Good morning mesdames et messieurs." Monsieur Pierre bowed down to the large crowd, before beckoning everyone to take a seat at a table, "Shall we thank the lovely Valerie for holding such an event here at her gym?"

"I'm very happy to be a part of this celebration." She thanked everyone through the applause with her sweet and calming demeanor, "I'm just glad to see everyone wearing my designs. I do hope you guys all find them comfortable!" She curtsied before taking her seat next to Aria at a more extravagant looking table.

"Merci beaucoup." Monsieur Pierre once again thanked the black haired gym leader before averting his attention to the awaiting participants, "As you can all see, your tables all have a sign containing a number between one and eight. In front of you is a card that also contains a number between one and eight." Monsieur Pierre continued as everyone began to look to the cards in front of them, "I want you all to flip the cards over, and move to the table that contains your number. This will determine your groups for the set of mini games."

Everyone flipped their cards over and began scurrying around the area, making their way to their designated table.

"Hey Serena!" Ash called out to the honey blonde haired girl, walking behind her, "What number did you get?"

"Four..." She replied before turning around to look as Ash.

"Me too!" He flipped his card around for Serena to see the giant "4" imprinted in bold letters, "I think we'll win every event with you and I on the same team!" He said holding up his fist in determination as they took their final steps to their new table.

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu agreed in excitement.

"You think so?" Serena smiled at Ash. She was happy to have him on her team.

"The chances are even greater now with me on your team!" Miette said behind the two.

"That's great!" Ash said, psyched up to have two of his friends on his team.

Miette took a hold of Serena's wrist, taking her a least a few feet away from Ash, "Serena..." A sly grin appeared on her face as she whispered into her ear, "I saw you in a play with Ash on TV not too long ago... Are you making any more progress?" She teased.

Serena's face turned red remembering herself kiss Ash on the cheek, "It-It was just a play!" She stammered.

"Sure it was..." Miette winked.

"It was!"

"I guess I'm the missing puzzle to your group!" Serena and Miette heard a voice sound next to them.

They turned around to see a tall, thin pale boy standing in front of them. He had piercing grey eyes, and straight black hair that stopped just above his chin.

"Calem...!?" Serena called out in disbelief, a tinge of anger in her voice.

"Hey Serena! Your mom told me you have become a pokemon performer..." He said while taking in the grown features of his long time 'friend', "I had a feeling I was going to run into you here! And it's even better knowing that we'll be apart of the same team!" He finished off, looking away in embarrassment.

"Why were you talking to my mom and what are you doing here!?"

"You two know each other?" Ash asked, slightly turning his head to look at Serena.

"Yes. My mom used to watch over Calem when his parents went on business trips, and I was always forced to play with him." Serena responded before glaring at Calem, "Why are you here!?"

"I'm an assistant to Valerie... just like your friend Cilan." Calem answered her question.

"I'm sensing some kind of tension here..." Miette said staring at Serena who was tightening her fists.

"Of course there is!" Serena said angrily, "He used to tug on my hair, and throw mud at my face! He even cut up all of my favorite plushies!"

"That was a long time ago! I'm not that kind of person anymore!"

"I'm not buying any of it!" Serena spat out, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Hey guys..." Ash began, feeling uncomfortable by the sudden change of mood in his surroundings "We're here to relax and have fun! Let's not fight..."

"Pika...chu..."

Serena took a deep breath as a means to calm down her nerves. Ash was right. They were there to have fun, and she certainly wasn't going to let a small insignificant blemish in her life ruin that for her.

"You're right Ash..." She replied as she took a seat next to him at the table, "Whatever happened in the past is in the past..."

"That's the spirit Serena... Pikachu and I never really got along when we first met and look at us now!" Ash said, before petting the yellow mouse like pokemon who was perched up on his shoulder.

"Chaaaaa~!" Pikachu enjoyed its trainers sign of affection as it nuzzled up against Ash's cheek.

Serena smiled to herself, looking at Ash who was officially introducing himself to her old friend. Whenever she felt down or frustrated or even mad, Ash was just always there, sprinkling his optimism around her. She supposed that she could be less angry at Calem for Ash's sake.

* * *

"How do you think we should go about stealing that twerps Pikachu?" James asked, as Team Rocket hid behind a bush, observing the small group that was starting their first challenge – a three legged race, except with four people, making it a five legged race.

"I should be a part of this event! I am a performer. I am THEE performer!" Jessie whined, not interested in watching her fellow performers enjoy their time at the event.

"We took a vote, and we are going to capture Pikachu today!" Meowth spat out. They were all tired of Jessie's need to boss them around all the time, so they changed their system into taking a vote, and the results were two to one – two to capture pikachu, and one to attend the event.

"Aria's delphox is here too..." James said moving his gaze to the table that was reserved for Aria, Valerie, and Monsieur Pierre, "So are Valerie's pokemon... Think of the performances you can create with their pokemon..." He began to persuade his red headed partner in crime. If she wasn't interested in capturing Pikachu, she could at least be interested in capturing someone else's pokemon.

"I suppose I could work with a spritzee and a mawile..." Jessie perked up, shoving James to the side to get a good look at the pokemon who were enjoying their time underneath the cherry blossom tree. She didn't have much interest in capturing Pikachu that day, but she was determined to capture herself Aria or Valerie's pokemon.

* * *

Serena, Ash, Miette, and Calem were all lying on the grass tired from coming in last place for the five legged race. Their cooperation as a team wasn't working out so well because of Serena's uneasiness with having her one leg attached to Calem. She kept thinking that he was going to do something like sneak a bug into her clothes when she wasn't looking. She said nothing though because she didn't want Ash to know that she was absolutely dreading him on their team.

"I blame these kimonos..." Miette said out of breath as they watched Tierno, Shauna, Clemont, and Bonnie – the winning team receive their prize; four passes to a buffet located in Lumiose City, "Great style, but not so great for a challenge like this."

"Yeah..." Ash agreed before turning his head to look at the winning team, "I can't believe you guys won with Clemont on your team!" Ash called out, teasing the blonde haired inventor.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean!?" Clemont called out as he finished undoing the rope that was keeping his leg attached to Shauna.

"It's my fancy footwork!" Tierno said, dancing his way over to Ash to offer his assistance with untying their ropes, "It all got us to the finish line first, and Clemont did a great job!"

"Well we won't lose the next one!" Ash said determined to win the next challenge.

* * *

"I think we might lose this one..." Miette said after Aria just announced the next event as a dance challenge, "I don't know about Calem, but Serena and I are pretty good dancers. We are performers after all..." She turned her gaze to look at Ash, "But you not so much..."

"Hey... I'm not that bad!" Ash rebutted, scowling.

"You're pretty bad..." Serena giggled, remembering the times when Ash was trying to use Tierno's rhythmic dancing as his own strategy for battling.

In just a few minutes, the area began to fill with upbeat music, and of course Tierno was the life of the dance floor with his partner blastoise dancing along beside him. A member from each team tried their best to out dance the black haired dancing master, but they all couldn't out dance him. Tierno's team had this challenge in the bag. Clemont, Bonnie, and Shauna haven't even been out on the dance floor. They were standing around the area just like everyone else, cheering their teammate on.

"Serena..." Calem called out to the honey blonde haired girl who was mesmerized by Tierno's moves. He's gotten even better since the last time she's seen him.

"What is it?" She asked in a low tone. She was doing fine just being in the same team with him, but she didn't exactly want to converse with him.

"Remember when we use to attend those dancing classes when we were five...?" He asked, catching Ash's and Miette's attention.

"You attended dance classes?" Ash tweaked his eyebrow up in curiosity.

"My mom made me attend classes with Calem because at one point she was too tired of watching after him..." Serena gritted through her teeth.

"Wow... You must have been a handful." Miette laughed.

"I think we can win this challenge with that dance we created when we were kids." Calem suggested.

"I don't remember the dance... and it was kind of childish don't you think?" Serena blinked, wondering what Calem was up to. She still didn't trust him. What if he was going to trip her?

"It's worth a shot! You should do it Serena!" Ash said encouraging his friend.

"I guess I could..." Serena tried, but Calem was already dragging her out onto the dance floor.

"You think you guys can out dance me?" Tierno asked, dancing circles around the pair.

"We can try..." Calem responded, getting into the groove of the music.

Serena stood there with wobbly knees, not sure of what to do. She was a performer but everything was rehearsed. She didn't exactly know as to how she was going to do a routine she barely remembered with a boy she didn't trust.

"Cmon Serena!" Calem said, grabbing a hold of her hand as he began leading her with the footwork.

Serena tried her best to remember the moves she learned years ago, and soon enough there she was, dancing beside Calem on the dance floor perfectly in sync.

"Not bad..." Tierno said before executing a move on the floor, that led to a backflip.

Everyone around them cheered. They were all amazed by Tierno's moves.

"We can do better." Calem claimed before once again grabbing ahold of Serena.

"What do you think you're doing?" Serena asked, biting her lip.

"Trust me."

"I don't really-"

Before she knew it Calem twirled the girl in a few circles, before lifting her up; his one arm resting against her back, and the other resting against the back of her knees. Serena instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, closing her eyes ready to brace herself from whatever embarrassing thing Calem was going to do to her. In a flash of a second, Calem released his grip from her legs, making her swing her legs around him before once again catching them in the same arm. In another second he released his other arm that was holding her back, making her upper body swing around him before he suddenly got ahold of her – he perfectly executed an 'around the world' dance lift that they wanted to do when they were younger, but too small and weak to even attempt it.

"We have our winners!" Aria said through the mic before running to the dance floor to congratulate the two on their victory. She handed them four tickets – the same prize as Tierno's team – four tickets to a buffet in Lumiose City.

"Wow Calem..." Miette said running to the center of the dance floor with Ash, "You must have a lot of muscles to pull that off... I mean Serena is pretty heavy." Miette teased her friend.

"Ever since Serena and I went separate ways... I've still been working on my dance moves."

"You could have said something!" Serena punched his arm, feeling terrified, "I could have gotten hurt!"

"I told you to trust me." Calem laughed, rubbing his nape.

As Ash looked at Serena who was lecturing Calem on safety, there was a part of him that suddenly didn't want Serena to make up with her childhood friend. He felt like there was some kind of bond between the two that threatened his own bond with Serena.

"Look Serena..." Calem began, "I know that I might have been a bit rude to you when we were younger, but I swear I'm different now!"

"You were really rude..." Serena said crossing her arms over her chest, "But I guess I could... give you a second chance."

Calem's eyes beamed with hope. He was happy to hear that he had another shot to earn Serena's trust. "I am an assistant to Valerie, but I didn't even have to join the event... The only reason I joined was because I knew you were going to be here, and I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry... and..." Calem paused, his cheeks were turning red, "after seeing the way you perform on TV, I realized that I like you... and I want you to stay by my side..."

"What?" Serena blinked in confusion by the sudden confession that was happening before her eyes.

"You don't have to say anything right now... You can just tell me how you feel when the day is over..."

* * *

After a few more challenges and a deliciously nutritious lunch, everyone was dismissed to enjoy the rest of their day however they saw fit. Ash was counting on winning every challenge he could for the day, but they ended up losing everything else after the dance challenge, because of his lack of focus. He couldn't even manage to win the challenge that involved battling – something he knew that he was good at.

"You okay Ash?" Clemont asked the black haired boy who lying on his stomach, his face buried into his pillow, "Are you not feeling well? You barely ate anything during lunch." Clemont said, looking through his knapsack for one of the many inventions he was working on.

"I'm fine..." Ash lied. During lunchtime, Calem took out a photo from his pocket that contained a five year old Serena and Calem who were dressed up as a bride and groom. Calem then claimed that his and Serena's parents used to say that they were going to get married to one another someday in the future. He was already feeling like something was stabbing his chest, and after seeing that photo he just felt like someone took his heart and tore it into pieces. He was feeling dull and lifeless.

"Are you sure? I can ask Valerie for some medicine if you'd like..." Clemont offered, "I'm kind of surprised that you decided to come back here with me instead of exploring the garden with everyone else...I mean... I just wanted to finish a few of my inventions, but you've been lying there for hours."

"I just don't feel well..." Ash lied once more, "I think resting will make me feel better..."

"Pikachu..." Pikachu's ears fell as it stared at it's trainer lay lifelessly on the bed.

"Why don't you go train with your pokemon?" Clemont suggested, worried about his friend. He could sense that Ash was lying about being sick, but he didn't know what he was trying to hide, "If you lay there any longer, you won't get any sleep tonight."

"Yes dad..." Ash groaned before lifting his weight from off the bed.

"Pika pi?" Pikachu's ears slightly perked up, hoping that Ash would feel better after a good training session. It climbed up his shoulder as Ash exited the room.

* * *

"She's kind of an odd gym leader ain't she?" Meowth said, staring at Valerie who was conversing with her spritzee. It was able to learn the language of the humans, but it didn't think that a human was able to learn to speak like a pokemon.

"Yeah..." James said as he looked through his binoculars wondering how they were going to steal her spritzee and mawile, "What do you propose we do?" James turned his head to see that Jessie was no longer sitting beside him on the thick branch they've been sitting on for hours, "Where did she go?"

 _Knock Knock!_

Meowth and James averted their attention to see Valerie stand up and walk towards her bedroom door. She turned the knob, opening the door to reveal a Jessie dressed up in one of the many disguises Team Rocket had to offer.

"What is she doing!?" James asked as he watched Jessie act like a lost performer.

"I think that's our cue..." Meowth said, "Jessie did say to get ready for her cue."

"That fast!? How are we even going to capture those pokemon without them catching Valerie's attention!?"

"Like that I guess..." Meowth pointed to the room that was now empty. Jessie somehow managed to get Valerie to leave the room.

* * *

Ash walked along the different paths of the garden that took him to a separate field that had a fountain with a few benches. He sighed before taking a seat on one of the wooden benches.

"Pika pika?" Pikachu tilted its head in confusion. It thought that they were going to go train, "Pika Pi?"

"I don't really feel like training today..." Ash said answering Pikachu's question.

"Pika?"

"I don't know Pikachu... I'm just not in the mood." He replied, watching the stream of water coming out of the sculptured magikarp's mouth.

"So... Serena." Ash heard Calem's voice coming from somewhere nearby. He stood up from the bench, walking around the area until he finally spotted Serena and Calem standing beneath the cherry blossom tree. Ash hid behind one of the bushes, intending to be hidden from their view.

Serena knew that it was a bad idea the second that Miette suggested for them to play hide and seek in the garden. She knew that Miette only suggested it so that she could talk about her feelings with Calem. That Miette enjoyed sticking her business into everyone's love life. The second she claimed herself as "it", Calem had no interest in hiding and instead focused on finding Serena.

"Well I-" Serena began, "I just... well you see..."

 _KABOOM!_

Serena and Calem averted their gaze from one another to see an explosion on the side of the gym.

"What's going on?" Calem questioned in concern as the familiar Meowth balloon began ascending up into the sky.

"Team Rocket!" Serena said out loud ready to run in the direction of the balloon. She squinted her eyes to see spritzee and mawile trapped in the glass cage that was attached to the bottom of the balloon's basket.

"Team Rocket? Whose Team Rocket?" Calem asked.

"They're bad people who try to steal other peoples pokemon!" Ash said joining the two who were standing beneath the tree, "I think those are Valerie's pokemon!"

"Ash where did you come from?" Serena asked. He made it to the scene fairly quickly.

"I er... I was training!" He lied, "Enough about me. Let's go save those pokemon! The balloon is headed this way!"

"What are those twerps doing down there!?" Jessie questioned as they got closer to the cherry blossom tree, Shouldn't they be sleeping by now!?"

"Give back those pokemon!" Ash called out to Team Rocket, "They aren't yours!"

"They are now!" Jessie said before sending out her gourgeist to battle, "Gourgeist use shadow ball!"

"Greninja come on out and use water shuriken!" Ash said out loud, releasing his water pokemon from its pokeball.

"Greninja!" Greninja came out quick before jumping up into the air and aiming its attack at the shadow ball headed their way.

"Let's help Ash!" Serena said, releasing her braxien from it's pokeball, "Braxien use flamethrower on the balloon!"

"Brax!" Braxien took its branch from its tail, and aimed its flames towards the balloon.

"Not so fast! Inkay join the fray!" James threw his pokeball up into the air, "Use Psybeam!"

"Inkay!"

The psybeam collided with braxien's flamethrower, creating yet another explosion.

Calem stood there, staring at the two friends battle head on with Team Rocket. He never thought that Serena was one to engage in a battle. And the way she battled alongside Ash... it was like the two were in sync.

"One more time! Use water shuriken!" Ash commanded as his pokemon sent yet another wave of water like stars towards the pumpkin pokemon.

"Dodge it gourgeist!" The pumpkin pokemon floated higher into the sky to avoid the attack.

A smirk curved upon Ash's lips as his greninja's attack hit the glass cage, releasing the pokemon from its confined space.

"Spritzee!"

"Mawile!"

"You tricked me! How dare you!" Jessie yelled out in anger, "Shadow ball on those twerps!"

"Gourgeist!" Gourgeist sent another purple orb towards Ash and his friends.

"Braxien! Flamethrower Let's go!" Serena commanded as her braxien jumped up into the air, colliding another one of its attack with gourgeist.

"Inkay psybeam now!"

"Inkay~!" Inkay turned upside down, releasing a wave of its attack towards the fire pokemon – hitting it in the process.

"Pikachu now!" Ash commanded as his pikachu jumped up high into the sky.

"Where did it come from!?" Meowth blinked in surprise, "It couldn't have jumped that high."

"Pikachu hid beneath Braxien's fur!" Ash said, a smirk on his face, "Use Iron tail!"

"Pikaaaa chuu!" Pikachu charged it's attack while doing a flip before getting a good aim at its target, "Piika!" It aimed at the balloon, creating a giant tear on the cheek.

"Braxien Flamethrower!"

"Pikachu thunderbolt!"

The electricity from pikachu's thunderbolt creeped its way to Braxien's flamethrower, slowly wrapping itself around the flames, creating a combination attack of fire and electricity. The attack hit gourgeist, and inkay head on, making the two pokemon crash into the balloon, creating an explosion and causing Team Rocket to once again rocketeer up into the sky.

"We should have just attended the celebration!" Jessie said, not surprised by the turn of events.

"We should have listened to you..." James and Meowth sighed in unison.

"We're blasting off again!"

"We did it!" Serena jumped up in glee as spritzee and mawile came to her side, giving their thanks to Serena and Ash.

"I think you're getting much better at battling too Serena." Ash complimented the girl who was petting Valerie's spritzee.

"Thanks Ash..." She turned her body to face the boy who was standing next to her, "Are you okay now?" She asked concerned about her friend, "You didn't look well earlier... Did you want me to make you some soup? Or get you some medicine?"

"Serena I'm fine..." Ash said, pulling Serena's hand away from trying to feel his forehead. In just a second, Serena was able to mend his broken heart.

Calem stared at the two friends, a small smile creeping upon his face. He presumably got the answer to his question, just by staring at Serena converse with Ash.

"I'll return these pokemon to Valerie..." Ash said, walking away with mawile and spritzee. He had no idea as to what Serena did to make him feel better, but now he was okay with leaving her alone with Calem.

"I think I got your answer Serena..." Calem finally said as Ash disappeared behind the trees, heading towards the gym.

"What do you mean?" Serena asked, wondering about where Valerie was when her pokemon got stolen.

"You're in love with Ash."

"Wha-What!?" Serena stammered, her face turning a deep shade of red, "What makes you think that!?"

"It's okay Serena... I see that he's a great guy. If only I was that great to you when we were younger, then maybe it would have been me." Calem closed his eyes, accepting the fact that the person he liked, liked someone else, "I wish you good luck."

"Thanks Calem..."

* * *

"Team Rocket was here!?" Bonnie crossed her arms over her chest, "I knew something was happening the second I heard that explosion! But I thought it was Miette trying to lure me out."

"I don't have any pokemon that would cause an explosion!" Miette laughed, "Although... I didn't care much for the explosion either. I thought it was just a recipe gone wrong in the kitchen..."

"I agree with Bonnie... I thought it was just you trying to lure us out." Shauna added, as the group who played hide and seek began to talk over each others words.

"Well thank you Ash and Serena for returning my pokemon to me." Valerie thanked the pair, "You two make quite the amazing duo. That attack from last night was executed very beautifully."

"Thank you so much..." Serena smiled at the black haired gym leader.

"I'm a fool for getting tricked into getting locked in a closet..." Valerie giggled, "I hope it doesn't happen again..."

"I'm sure it won't..." Ash and Serena laughed.

 _And so our group of heroes ended their first day at the pokemon performers celebration with new and happy memories. Serena got to make amends with an old friend, and Ash got to experience yet another side to what it's like to be in love (the heartbroken side)... As the journey continues!_

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Clementine & Ashley:** Gladis, a young robot engineer and a huge hero to Clemont has come to the Laverre City Gym to help Valerie with her futuristic clothing line. Valerie tells everyone that Gladis will be spending her time in the girls dormitory while the participants of the event are to enjoy their rest and relaxation day! Clemont devises a plan to dress up as a girl, so he could meet his hero, and convinces Ash to join him. As a girl Ash loses Clemont, and ends up spending the day with Serena, Bonnie, Shauna, and Miette hearing about all their thoughts about life and the boys!

A/N: If my next chapter was actually an episode in the anime, just imagine Ash in Serena's old clothing. haha. That would be great.


	6. Clementine & Ashley

**A/N:** Woohoo another chapter a few days later!

 **TO PurimPopoie:** Thank you so much for the tip. I originally wanted it to be all lowercase, but I guess it was just a habit to capitalize it sometimes. I've decided to capitalize everything for this chapter, but there might be a few errors still. haha I just needed to introduce Calem somehow so I made him an assistant like Cilan, too bad he'll only be there for a chapter or two. I should check out all your stories you've written a bunch. The only amourshipping stories I've read are the top two when you google "amourshipping fanfics" on google. haha. I've been reading a bunch of random ones from The Legend of Korra.

 **TO FantasyLover88:** Thank you pointing out which part you liked. It always helps me when I write future chapters. :DD

Thank you to everyone else who also left a review **(2 Guests, doc boy, Pokemon fan, and UltimateCCC)** you guys are great!

* * *

 **Summary:** Gladis, a young robot engineer and a huge hero to Clemont has come to the Laverre City Gym to help Valerie with her futuristic clothing line. Valerie tells Ash, Cilan, and Clemont that Gladis will be spending her time in the girls dormitory while the participants of the event are to enjoy their day! Clemont devises a plan to dress up as a girl, so he could meet his hero, and convinces Ash to join him. As a girl Ash loses Clemont, and ends up spending the day with Serena, Bonnie, Shauna, and Miette giving him a chance to experience what girls are like when boys aren't around.

 **EP 06: Clementine & Ashley**

"Alright Pansage! Keep using Bullet Seed!" The green haired pokemon connoisseur instructed his grass type pokemon for the fifth type.

"And Bunnelby, keep using Mud Shot!" Clemont followed behind Cilan as the two continued on with assisting Ash with his special training.

Ash locked his eyes on his two pokemon, proud to see how strong they have become. It wasn't too long ago when Noivern was still a Noibat that barely knew how to fly, and now it was flying around the area like a complete pro. And his Talonflame... he could remember when it was just a small Fletchling that was barely able to dodge a few attacks, and now it was dodging a bunch at once. "Talonflame and Noivern! Keep it up!" He encouraged his pokemon who were relentlessly dodging the mix of mud balls and bullet seeds.

Valerie walked over to the practice battlefield with a mysterious guest, surprised to see that the trio was up so early, "Good morning!" She interrupted their intense training session.

"Oh good morning Valerie!" Ash and Cilan greeted the elegant gym leader.

"I'm so sorry for interrupting." She said in her sweet tone, "But you guys are up early."

"Yeah." Ash made a fist, "Need to become stronger for the Kalos League!"

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu held its two tiny paws up in the air, having a complete understanding of its trainers feelings.

"That's wonderful!" Valerie slightly tilted her head, giving the two boys a smile, "Monsieur Pierre will be making an announcement soon. Don't focus too hard on your training or you won't be able to enjoy the rest of your day."

Ash chuckled knowing that he would have ended up training till night time if Valerie didn't stop for the quick reminder, "We won't..."

"Pardon me, but who is she?" Cilan asked, pointing to the young lady who was standing next to Valerie. She had long, straight, brown hair that flowed down to her waist with straight bangs that stopped just above her square shaped glasses. She had vibrant violet colored eyes with a small nose that was barely able to keep her glasses up. She was just a little taller than Valerie with a thin built, and she wore a lab coat over her blue shirt, and tan capris.

"This is Gladis. She's a robot engineer and she will be helping me out with the futuristic clothing line."

"That's great! I'm Cilan." Cilan introduced himself to the girl, excited to work with another person for Valerie's clothing line, "It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"And I'm Ash!" Ash waved, garnering her attention, "And this is Pikachu."

"Pikachu!"

"You know my friend Clemont is an inventor himself. I think you guys would get along great! He's standing there next to-" Ash stopped after turning around to see that his blonde haired friend was no longer standing where he was, "He was just there a second ago..." Ash scratched his head confused by Clemont's sudden disappearance.

"Well I do love meeting new inventors... Too bad he left." Gladis sighed.

"Gladis will be spending most of her time in the girls dormitory. She is a very busy person. I'm glad she made the time to be apart of my clothing line." Valerie said before focusing on Cilan, "I enjoyed your inspiration book too Cilan. We should talk about it later."

"Of course Valerie!" Cilan replied in the most professional way he could, but even Ash could tell that was he was all giddy inside from Valerie's approval.

"I'll see you two later!" Valerie waved at the pair as Gladis followed behind her to the girls dormitory.

 _I wonder where Clemont went... He would have loved this..._ Ash thought to himself as he scratched his head in wonder, _Oh well..._

* * *

"Hey Ash!" Serena called out to the boy who was already standing by the cherry blossom tree, waiting for what Monsieur Pierre planned for the day, "How was your training?" She asked, running towards him with Bonnie lagging behind her.

"It was great!" He replied, biting his lip as Serena came to a halt in front of him. He was very much familiar with his heart skipping a beat, or his body temperature getting warmer whenever he saw Serena dressed in different clothing or whenever she did something nice for him, but now it was just happening every time he saw her and continued when she was near him.

"Sometimes I wish I could help you with your special training." She said meeting his eyes, "You're always training so hard... I wish I was apart of it."

"Me too..." Bonnie finally caught up, rubbing her eyes. She yawned before stretching her arms above her head. She looked like she still needed a couple more hours of sleep.

"I'm sure there's a lot of things you can help me out with..." He replied, feeling happy to know that his friends were so eager to help him.

"Good morning everyone!" Monsieur Pierre took his place beneath the cherry blossom tree, "I hope you all had a wonderful time yesterday!" He said as everyone nodded their heads or shouted out yes, "C'est bon! Today will be a nice rest and relaxation day. You will all find different signs around the gym that will lead you to the various activities my associates and I have to offer."

"That's sounds great!" Serena said with glee as Ash turned his head to admire the girl.

"And tonight we will have a wonderful traditional tea ceremony with our dinner." Monsieur Pierre finished off before bowing, "I hope you all have a wonderful time."

"Hey Pikachu, that gives us even more time to train. Isn't that great!?" Ash said, rubbing Pikachu's head.

"Cha~!"

Ash chewed on his lip as he watched Serena converse with Bonnie as they looked through the small brochure the coordinators were handing out. She just told him that she wanted to help him out with his training, and he didn't mind it at all if she could be there while he trained – if anything he preferred it. He opened his mouth ready to ask the girl for her help.

"Hey Serena!" Shauna bumped into Ash's shoulder, "Oh, I'm so sorry Ash.. I guess I'm just a bit excited." She apologized as Miette followed behind her, "Miette and I were thinking that we should have a girl's day!" Shauna said excitedly.

"A girl's day?" Serena asked, blinking her eyes.

"It's basically a pampering day for us performers..." Miette pointed out, "We can get our hair and nails done."

"That sounds like fun! I wanna join too!" Bonnie said, jumping up in excitement.

"Nenene!"

"That does sound like a lot of fun." Serena smiled, "Let's do it!"

"Great! I want to try out one of the yoga classes!" Shauna said grabbing Serena's wrist as she began dragging her in the direction of the temporary yoga studio.

"See you later Ash!" Serena said, giving Ash a smile.

"See you later..." Ash sighed. He was happy to see his friend enjoy her time, but he was also kind of sad because he wanted to spend the day with her.

* * *

"Pstt... Ash!"

Ash slightly shook his head before turning around to see who was calling out for him. Pikachu's ears perked up wondering the same thing. "It must be my imagination..." Ash laughed, returning his focus back to the brochure as Pikachu shrugged it's shoulders.

"Ash!" The voice grew louder.

Ash once again turned around, finally spotting Clemont hiding behind a cluster of bushes. He walked over to the blonde haired inventor who now had a bunch of leaves and twigs stuck in his hair, "What are you doing there?" Ash asked.

"I've been keeping a close watch on the girl's dorm..." Clemont replied in a quiet tone.

"Why?"

"Because... Gladis is one of my all time inspirations! I want to talk to her about her robot inventions!"

"You had a chance to introduce yourself this morning." Ash paused, rubbing his head, "But you suddenly disappeared."

"I wasn't ready to speak with her!"

"Well... she's spending her time where all the girl's sleep. You're just going to have to wait until she comes out for dinner or something..." Ash said, "In the meanwhile you can help me train!"

"I don't think she's ever coming out Ash!" Clemont popped out from his hiding spot in the bushes, "I've been watching all morning!"

"Well what do you want me to do about it?" Ash asked startled by his friends behavior, "We're not girls so-" Ash stopped himself from completing his sentence as he stared at his blonde haired friend who had a freaky grin plastered on his face. Ash blinked, before realizing what Clemont wanted to do. He wanted to dress up as a girl to get into the girl's dormitory, "You're not going to dress up as a girl are you?" Ash was almost too scared to ask.

"Precisely!" Clemont said as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, "And you're going to do it with me!"

"What!?" Ash said out loud in shock, "I am not going to dress up as a girl!" Ash protested. He's dressed up as a girl many times before, and everytime he did he always told himself afterwards that he was never going to do it again.

"I always help you train!" Clemont pointed out.

He was right. Clemont always woke up early with him to help with his special training, and in return Ash has done nothing to show his gratitude, "Fine..." Ash sighed. He was once again falling into the world of crossdressing.

* * *

"Clemontic Gear on!" Clemont pressed the green button on his _'Get Ready in Seconds: Fashion Makeover Style'_ ; his latest invention that was inspired by Cilan and Serena who constantly talked about the latest trends along their journey.

The pair patiently stood beneath a metal hoop with a red shower curtain wrapped around it, standing beneath the invention as a bright, horizontal red light began to scan their faces.

"Faces detected." A robotic voice was heard as a bunch of robotic like arms started to come out from the sides of the invention with brushes and makeup attached to it.

"Wow!" Ash admired the amount of effort Clemont put into his own invention. He was getting so much better at putting things together, "Science is so amazing!" Ash said astonished, as one of the robotic arms began to apply blush onto his face.

Clemont reached down for a knob on his invention as soon as the robotic arms finished up with his makeup, "It will even choose some clothes for us!" He turned the knob to "dress up" mode.

 _Eeeeee Crrrrrrr!_ The machine began to react to the mode change.

"What's happening!?" Ash asked in surprise as the robotic arms began to spill a mix of powdered makeup and liquid eyeliner around the area.

Clemont tried to reach for the dial, once again trying to change the settings, but the robotic arms were flailing around making it quite difficult for Clemont to reach, "It's malfunctioning!" Clemont said in distress as the machine blew up in their faces.

"So much for your plan." Ash said with a slight headache. Him and Clemont were now covered in soot with disheveled hairstyles.

"Are you guys alright!?" Cilan rushed to their room, "I heard an explosion!" He leaned over, examining Ash's face before noticing a faint color of eyeshadow on his eyelids, "Are you putting on makeup Ash?" Cilan raised an eyebrow.

"It's Clemont's idea!" Ash held his hands out in front of him, "He want's to dress up as girls to talk to Gladis!"

"I'm in no position to judge..." Cilan said as he stroked his chin, "I can help you guys out! I've been watching Valerie and the makeup artists before the fashion shows, I can make you guys look like girls!"

Ash sighed. He was hoping that Cilan would point out that Clemont's plan was a bad idea.

"That's great! Let's get on it! It's almost noon!" Clemont stood up holding his fist out in determination.

* * *

Ash could feel his adrenaline rush through his veins as the sweat dripped down from his forehead. He exhaled as soon as they passed two of Valerie's followers who resided in the gym.

"I can't believe we're doing this..." Ash slouched down, his legs feeling constricted by the stockings he had to wear. Cilan dressed him up in a simple white shirt tucked beneath Serena's old red skirt, with stockings and a pair of black flats. He wore a long brunette wig that closely assembled Valerie's hairstyle. Clemont on the other hand was wearing a yellow sundress with floral print, and the same black flats. His wig was red and short with soft curls.

Pikachu and the rest of his other pokemon couldn't come along with him or else it would have become too obvious if Serena and the others spotted them. Instead his companions and Clemont's were lucky enough to spend the day with Cilan and his pokemon, probably off to one of the pokemon spa's.

"It won't be too bad! It's not like we'll get lost!" Clemont said trying to perfect his strut as a girl, "Hey girls!" Clemont's voice went up a couple pitches as a few girls passed by them.

"Hey! You should get a face mask! My face is so soft!" A girl pointed out as she began to rub her cheeks with the tips of her fingers.

"And the assistant is so dreamy!" One of her friends pointed out, "That performer Serena is so lucky! I think he just asked her out on a date." She giggled before the continued off in the opposite direction.

"They don't suspect a thing!" Clemont said amused by Cilan's skills as a costumer and make up artist.

Ash stood there not listening to a word that was coming out of Clemont's mouth. All he could think about was how Serena got yet another boys attention. Was there always this many boys taking interest in her? He's never noticed before. _I hope she said no..._ Ash balled up his fists before looking up to see that Clemont was no longer standing beside him. _Where did he go?_ It hasn't even been five minutes and he already lost him.

He continued walking, making a few turns. He even walked up and down a few set of stairs. He didn't realize that the gym was this big. He wish he had the help of his pokemon to find Clemont even faster.

"…Ash."

Ash stopped in his tracks hearing his name. He took a few steps back, peeking into the crack of one of the bedroom doors to see Serena, Bonnie, Shauna, and Miette sitting on the beds as they ate their lunch.

"I would have said yes." Shauna intercepted, "He's from the Johto region. I'd love to hear about the Johto region... and well you've had a crush on the same boy since forever Serena, maybe it's time to move on."

 _Same boy? Crush? What's a crush?_ Ash was eager to hear more about the conversation even with his lack of knowledge about love. He tucked his annoyingly long hair behind his ear.

"I don't know..." Miette teased, "Did you hear about the play? Serena kissed him on the cheek."

"That's a huge step for you!"

Serena gulped down the remainder of her sandwich, "It was just a play!" She insisted as Miette and Bonnie began to giggle. Bonnie had a lot to say about the situation, but she was contemplating whether or not she wanted to tell Serena about Ash's jealous moments.

 _What play?_ Ash thought to himself clearly dumbfounded by the fact that it was him that she kissed. He leaned in closer to the door, causing him to lose his footing. The door opened wide as he fell into the room.

The girls all turned their heads to see the unfamiliar face enter the room.

"Are you alright!?" Bonnie asked getting off the bed to help Ash out.

Ash stood up on his own, declining Bonnie's help, "I'm fine!" He panicked as he tried his best to put on a female voice, "I just lost my friend, and I heard a few voices and thought that she was in here!" He lied.

"Oh... well that's too bad. Why don't you stay with us? Maybe your friend will show up!" Bonnie suggested before introducing herself and Dedenne who was munching on some pokemon food beside the bed with the rest of their pokemon. Ash clearly thought his disguise was pretty good if Bonnie was able to get up close and not recognize him.

"What's your name?" Serena asked, being the last one to introduce herself.

"My name is... Ashley!" Ash chuckled, feeling flustered. He didn't think that he'd have to use that alias again.

"I really like your skirt Ashley." Serena complimented, "You know, I think I have the same one."

"Oh..." Ash flushed in embarrassment. The skirt he was wearing was Serena's old skirt, "Great minds think alike..."

"Why don't you join us for lunch? We have a ton of food left." Shauna offered, handing a sandwich to Ash.

"Oh I think I should look for my friend... She might be worried about me..."

Serena stood up from her bed walking over to Ash, "If you stay in one spot, there's a greater chance of your friend finding you!" She pointed out, "Besides it's always great to meet new ones, and even if you don't find her, I'm sure you're bound to during the dinner." She finished off with her sweet smile, causing Ash's heart to once again skip a beat.

"Okay." He agreed knowing that he just couldn't say no to her. He wanted to spend time with her, he just didn't expect it to be like this.

* * *

"Oh hi there." Gladis opened the door to see the newly disguised Clemont standing in front of her, "Is there something you need?" She eyed the girl, noticing that something looked oddly familiar.

"Hi there..." Clemont was trying his best to contain his excitement, "I'm a big fan of your work, and I just wanted to meet you."

"Ohh... That's very nice to hear. There's not many people my age that talk to me about my work."

"I'm actually an inventor myself." Clemont chewed on his lip. He seriously could not contain his need to fangirl over the girl that was standing in front of him,"...And I heard you were working with Valerie for her new futuristic line. I think that's awesome! Can I possibly see some of your work?"

"Sure! I could use help with designing a few things. I didn't think it would be this hard. It's always great to get another girl's point of view anyway!" She said, grabbing a hold of Clemont's hand and dragging him into Valerie's office, "So what's your name?"

"...Clementine." Clemont squealed not believing that one of his idols just touched him. He hoped that Ash was doing fine on his own.

* * *

The four girls plus 'Ashley' each took a seat in a chair as the workers around them began to massage their hands.

"So are you a performer?" Miette asked, turning her attention to 'Ashley'.

"No... my friend is." Ash lied - something he seemed to be doing for the last hour, "She's still pretty new to it, and has only been in a couple competitions.."

"Oh that's too bad. I hope she becomes a worthy opponent in the future!" Miette replied, "So what color do you want your nails to be painted."

"Err... Just clear?" Ash said, feeling the need to smack his face against the wall over and over again. It was his fault for suggesting to get their nails done.

"Well that's no fun." Bonnie pouted, disapproving Ash's choice.

"You again... It must be fate." A boy with short messy brown hair walked up to the honey blonde haired girl, "I'm just kidding..." The boy said noticing the scowl on Serena's face, "I'm just headed out to lunch. I hope you girls enjoy the rest of your day."

"Who is that boy?" Ash asked with curiosity.

"He claimed to be a huge fan of Serena when we went to get facials, and then he attempted to ask her out." Shauna answered.

"You seem to be quite popular with the boys Serena..." Ash said in a sad tone.

Miette giggled,"Apparently... I mean, Tierno was praising you yesterday, and Calem confessed his love to you too. I don't know if I should be feeling jealous."

"Too bad none of the attention is coming from you know who..." Shauna added, nudging Serena with her elbow. The two girls exchanged a look and Ash blinked trying to understand what was happening. During their few seconds of making eye contact he swore that there was some kind of meaning behind it, and Serena completely understood what Shauna was trying to say just by looking into her eyes. Ash turned his head to Miette and Bonnie who began to giggle. They clearly understood the look too. _Aww man... girls are so confusing..._

"He's just... much more focused on pokemon okay?" Serena pouted wanting to cross her arms over her chest, but the lady on her right started filing her nails.

An evil grin spread across the younger sibling from Lumiose City, "I think he sees you in a different light now..." Bonnie admitted as dedenne fell asleep on her lap.

"Stop joking around Bonnie." Serena began in a serious tone, "You're always saying things like..." Serena took a deep breath before trying to imitate Bonnie's voice, "Oh I saw him staring at you the whole time we were eating dinner or I saw him asking for advice from Clemont..." Serena said.

"I like watching you squirm... But I swear he's done a few things in the last while that proves it!"

Everyone averted their attention to Bonnie, interested in what she had to say. Ash sat there as the woman furiously scrubbed at his fingernails trying to get rid of all the dirt and grime that's been stuck there for who knows how long. All he could think about was who was this "he", and why was Serena so flustered everytime they mentioned him. And why did they keep teasing her about it? It was driving him crazy, "Who is this he?" Ash asked before Bonnie had the chance to continue on with what she wanted to say.

"Oh right..."Shauna apologized, "It kind of felt like we've been friends with you for awhile now that I completely forgot that we actually just met you and you don't know anything..."

"It's okay..." Miette added, "I don't think that Serena will mind anyways." She darted her eyes to Serena who was glaring at her, but she ignored it anyways before returning her attention to 'Ashley', "Serena has a crush on this boy."

"A crush on what boy?" Ash asked before clearing his throat. He felt like he was going to get a sore throat from trying to sound like a girl for too long. He was familiar with the term, but he didn't have a great understanding of it. He knew that it meant someone liking someone else as more than a friend, but what did that even entail? Did that mean that they thought of them like a sister or a brother? Still, there was this churning going on in his gut that was dying to know.

"She's had a crush on him for years..." Shauna said, "They're together a lot of the time, but Serena won't tell him how she feels for some reason."

Serena sighed. She was tired of them constantly talking about her love life, "I'm waiting for the right time..." She gritted through her teeth.

"What's his name?" Ash asked, intrigued to hear the answer.

Ash chewed on his bottom lip as he stood up straight, leaning forward with his butt resting upon the edge of his seat. He didn't exactly know what he wanted to hear. In the back of his mind he could hear a tiny voice just screaming out please let it be me, please say my name. He had no clue though as to why there was a part of him that wanted to hear his name though. He shifted his eyes to look at Serena who clearly just wanted Miette to get it over with. She was sitting there with a look of annoyance, but all he could see was a beautiful girl that he wanted to get to know. They've been travelling companions for awhile now and he already knew a lot of things about her, but there was this feeling that just made him want to know more. Even if he maybe already knew everything he just wanted more...

"His name is-" Ash returned his gaze to look at Miette who was about to reveal the name of the mysterious boy Serena had a crush on.

"ASH...ley!" Everyone turned their heads in the direction of the loud voice. Ash looked up to see Clemont standing at the doorway clearing his throat. He clearly was having a hard time keeping up with maintaining his female voice, "Ashley." He said once more, "I've been looking for you!" He continued as Ash saw Gladis standing behind him.

"Is that your friend?" Bonnie asked eying the suspicious looking character. The girl standing at the doorway looked oddly familiar to her.

"Yeah..." Ash replied in a monotone voice. He really wanted to hear about Serena's crush, but it just had to be ruined by Clemont's interruption.

"Are you done here?" Clemont asked.

Ash looked down to see that all his fingernails were painted a bright shade of pink. He didn't even notice when the woman began painting his nails, and it just made him want to scream. She could have at least chosen a more masculine color, "I guess I am..." Ash replied, standing up from his seat.

"Awee... I wish you could stay with us." Bonnie pouted.

"Sorry... My friend and I wanted to check out that facial place you guys were talking about." Ash lied, "I'll see you during dinner!"

"Okay. Bye!" Everyone waved off the pair as Ash, Clemont, and Gladis walked out of the room and down the hallway.

"I guess you found your friend!" Gladis said, "I'll see you tomorrow then Clementine." She finished off, "Thank you so much for helping me with designs for Valerie..."

"No problem!" Clemont said shaking Gladis' hand.

"And maybe tomorrow... you can be just Clemont... dressed like a boy." She winked.

"What!? Wh-What are you talking about?"

"I'm a robot engineer... I'm pretty smart you know..." She said before walking in the opposite direction, "You too Ash!"

"I'm glad to see that you managed to find her. Better yet, help her out." Ash said not even bothered by the fact that Gladis saw through their disguises. He was disappointed by Clemont interrupting his conversation with the others.

"How long did she know!?" Clemont panicked, "I thought it was full proof!"

"Cmon... Let's go get ready for dinner..." Ash said, dragging his friend down the hall.

* * *

"Big brother!" Bonnie called out as she ran across the field to unite with Clemont. This was one of the first times she's been apart from him for almost an entire day. Even during the tea ceremony, and dinner they were separated; sitting on opposite sides of the field.

Clemont turned his body in time to see Bonnie jumping up in the air, ready to give him a hug, "Hey Bonnie, how was your day?" He greeted his little sister, returning her embrace.

"It was great!" She said before looking up to Serena who followed behind her, "We should have girl's day more often!"

"It was really fun." Serena smiled before turning her attention towards Ash, Clemont, and Cilan, "We did meet this really nice girl named Ashley. We wanted her to join us during the dinner, but we couldn't find her..." Serena said in a sad tone.

"I'm sure she's here somewhere if you look hard enough..." Cilan laughed as Ash and Clemont's face turned bright red.

"I guess so..." Serena replied looking up in wonder, before returning her focus to the three boys standing in front of her, "Anyways, did you guys do anything interesting today?"

"It-It was great..." Ash stammered, "We ju-just trained..."

"Yeah trained..." Clemont agreed.

"Oh...kay..." Bonnie and Serena both blinked. They were confused as to why Clemont and Ash were acting so strange and jumpy.

"Good evening everyone!" Monsieur Pierre said, now standing up on a small stage that was set up below the cherry blossom tree, "To end off the night, would any of you lovely performers like to perform on the stage here just for fun?"

"You should do it Serena!" Bonnie suggested in glee.

"You know I think I will!" Serena replied as she ran over to the stage joining Miette, Shauna and a few other performers.

Serena released all of her pokemon from her pokeballs as she ran up the small plight of stairs ready to give an improvised performance. She danced away with her pokemon before letting Miette have her turn on the stage. She even danced along with Miette and her Slurpuff, and Shauna and her Ivysaur. Everyone enjoyed their time, giving off their last performance before the start of the next competition.

Ash stared at the honey blonde haired girl who was laughing with the other performers on the stage. Through all of the combinations of moves that were colliding beautifully into one another, Ash couldn't help but stare at her. When she danced along from one side to the other, he couldn't keep his eyes off of her. Even when he tried to focus on Aria who ran up the stage to join them, his eyes kept darting back to her. _What's happening to me...?_

* * *

"Alright Pikachu." Ash whispered to his pokemon before quietly closing the door to his room, "I said we were going to get some training time in, and we will!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu said in a hushed tone. It enjoyed its day at the pokemon spa, and was ready to get back to business.

Ash walked out of the gym, taking a moment to grasp the beautiful sight of the garden in front of him. It was a shame that it was going to be teared down in the morning. It was only for the Performers event. He took a quick stroll around the area just to make sure that he actually got the chance to explore the entire place.

"It's a nice place isn't it Pikachu?" Ash said to his furry friend.

"Cha~!"

Ash took a few steps forward to admire the cherry blossom tree. He stared at the beautiful pink flowers before noticing Serena sitting below the tree, staring off into the night sky, "Serena?" He called out, garnering her attention.

She shook her head before turning to look at the boy who was walking towards her, "Ash." She said, smiling at him.

"What are you doing out? Shouldn't you be sleeping?

"I can ask you the same thing." She giggled, causing Ash to blush.

"I wanted to train..."

"Haven't you been training all day?" Her eyebrow quirked up in curiosity.

"You know me..." He hesitated as he bit his lip, "What are you thinking about?" He finally asked, noticing the distant look that was on Serena's face.

Serena looked down staring at the few petals that have fallen onto her lap, "Palermo once told me that I was missing something to beat Aria in the final competition..." She frowned, "After watching Aria perform tonight, I just wonder what I was missing."

"Serena...It was your very first competition since you've decided to become a Performer. You'll learn a lot more things as you keep going."

"I know..." Serena replied before turning her head to meet Ash's eyes, "Sometimes I feel kind of impatient."

Ash began to feel himself get lost in her blue eyes. He chewed on his bottom lip, suddenly having an urge to pull Serena close to him and hold her in his arms. His heart began to beat even faster just thinking about having her that close to him. His eyes moved to her lips suddenly tweaking his interest in what it would be like to kiss a girl. _What am I thinking!? What's happening to me!?_

"Are you wearing nail polish?" Serena asked, breaking Ash from his train of thoughts.

"Wh-What!?" Ash said with a red face, "It was all Cilan... He needed to improve his skills as Valerie's assistant!"

"You know... I feel like you're not telling me something..." Serena teased before she broke out into laughter.

"I'm not lying!"

 _And so, once again Ash got to remember what it felt like to be put in female clothing. As a girl, he got to learn what girl's were like when there were no boys around them. It was something he did not want to experience again, but he wouldn't mind reliving that conversation just so he could hear Miette's answer. Still, a feeling deep inside of him continues to grow the more he spends time with Serena. Will Ash finally understand his own feelings before it's too late? As the journey continues!_

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Fete De L'Amour:** The event has ended and the heroes decide to remain in Laverre City. Alexa stops by telling the others of a festival happening just outside of the city – Fete De L'Amour. Bonnie and Serena are dying to go, and so Ash, Clemont, and Cilan agree. They come across a boy named Andy who seems to have troubles in the field of romance. Everyone is determined to help out Andy, but Ash doesn't have the slightest understanding about the meaning of love. He goes around, asking everyone about the meaning of love and eventually realizes something about himself.


	7. Fete De L'Amour

Hey guys! I seemed to have found a lot of time this week to work on the story. Hopefully I can keep that up!

Anywho, Thank you to everyone who left a review for the chapter: **DrafteeDragon, Guest, Sonic, docboy, FantasyLover88, and UltimateCCC** , you guys are great! I know my chapters are kind of lengthy, but thanks for taking the time to read them. :)

* * *

 **Summary:** The event has ended and the heroes decide to remain in Laverre City. Alexa stops by telling the others of a festival happening just outside of the city – Fete De L'Amour. Bonnie and Serena are dying to go, and so Ash, Clemont, and Cilan agree. They come across a boy named Andy who seems to have troubles in the field of romance. Everyone is determined to help out Andy, but Ash doesn't have the slightest understanding about the meaning of love. He goes around, asking everyone about the meaning of love and eventually realizes something about himself.

* * *

 **EP 07: Fete De L'Amour**

The sun began to slowly disappear beneath the horizon, the array of orange and yellow light no longer shining its colors onto the clouds. Ash could feel a slight breeze brushing against his exposed skin as he leaned back, resting the palm of his hands upon the grass. He turned his head to admire the honey blonde haired girl whose been sitting next to him for hours.

"It's so beautiful." Serena said breaking the silence that's been lingering for a short while.

"It sure is..." He mumbled as he continued staring at the girl who was taking in the view, "Hey Serena?" He sat up straight, moving an inch closer to her.

"What is it Ash?" She asked turning her head to meet his eyes.

Ash let out a small chuckle before reaching out to the pieces of her hair that was flailing in the wind. He tucked her hair behind her ear, resting his hand on her cheek. He could feel Serena tense up a bit by the sudden contact.

"Ash wha-" She asked startled, but came to a stop as the raven haired boy inched in closer to her face. The tip of his nose rubbed up against hers causing the hairs on her neck to stand up straight. He closed his eyes, causing Serena to instinctively close hers. He leaned in closer, letting the small gap between their lips get smaller and smaller.

"Ash?" He heard his name, "Ash?" He opened his eyes to see that Serena was no longer there. He looked around to see that the trees, the river, everything was starting to disappear one by one, "Ash?" The world around him suddenly began to shake, leaving distorted images of whatever was left, Ash!"

"What!?" Ash jumped up from his seat, jolting back into reality as he darted his head back and forth to see Clemont, Bonnie, Serena, Cilan and Pikachu all staring at him. He sat up straight, using his glove to wipe the drool that was just about to hit his chin. He slightly shifted his eyes downwards to see Serena's hand on his shoulder.

"I think you're training too hard... You were in a deep sleep." Serena giggled. Ash's face turned bright red as he stared at the girl who was sitting next to him. He just had a dream where he was going to kiss her.

"You were snoring really loudly too!" Bonnie added, leaning over the seat in front of him with Cilan and Clemont both sitting sideways to stare at the boy, "You were snoring like this!" She began to imitate the way he snored.

"I guess I should be taking a break from training then huh...?" He said, rubbing his head in embarrassment.

"Pi-Pikachu." Pikachu perked its ears up, sitting on Serena's lap as it stared up at its trainer in wonder. It noticed that there was something off about its trainer lately, but it didn't know what. It almost seemed like he was distracted by something... or someone.

"We're here everyone!" Alexa announced from the driver's seat, looking at her rear view mirror to see if everyone was okay.

 _After the event our heroes have been spending their time in Laverre City, once again falling into their daily grind. Earlier that morning Alexa got into contact with our heroes – after hearing from Professor Sycamore about where they were, and told them about the Fete De L'Amour. She asked if they wanted to join her as she wrote an article covering the event, and everyone was quick to say yes._

* * *

"This is so exciting!" Serena said as she stared at the tents and booths that were nicely organized around the area.

"If you don't mind me asking..." Cilan began, stroking his chin, "What exactly is the Fete De L'Amour."

Alexa took a few steps forward, after gathering the things she needed from the trunk of the vehicle, "It's a festival where you celebrate love..."

"Where you celebrate love?" Clemont questioned, not fully understanding the concept.

"You basically just spend time with your loved ones, and enjoy each others company for the day. Sometimes you get so busy with life that you forget to appreciate the ones that are always around you... You can even by them ribboned gifts if you'd like." Alexa pointed ahead at a wrapping station.

"Ribboned gifts?" Serena asked in interest.

"Yeah... You can buy a gift for your loved ones and get it gift wrapped with a ribbon for free at that station. Each ribbon represents a different kind of 'love'." Alexa began, as she pulled out a few ribbons from her pocket, "For instance, this blue one here represents friendship, and this purple one represents family... Like if Bonnie were to give a gift to Clemont, she would ask to have a purple ribbon on it."

"That sounds like fun! I'd love to get gifts for all of you!" Bonnie jumped up in excitement.

"Nenene!" Dedenne popped out from her yellow pouch to share its excitement with Bonnie.

"What's that red one for?" Ash asked, pointing to the last one on Alexa's palm.

Alexa held up the red ribbon, "This one is a much more romantic one. The red one is used for that special somebody in your life." She stopped, shortly reminiscing about how she got her red ribbon, "It's great for confessing your love to someone too." She giggled.

"Sounds like something Serena should use." Bonnie teased.

"Hey!" Serena puffed out her cheeks in anger. It was a good thing that no one understood Bonnie's comment.

"Well you guys should explore!" Alexa said as she began walking away from the group, "I need to talk to the lead coordinator and I assure you, it isn't going to be fun."

"See you later then!" Everyone waved Alexa off.

* * *

"Ughh..." Jessie groaned, "What are we going to do here!?" She stomped around the area, glancing over the small pieces of jewelry and homemade clothing at the booth closest to her.

James walked over admiring the pieces of jewelry at said booth, "This is just beautiful. Did you make these!?" He began to strike a conversation with the lady who was running the booth. He always had a thing for homemade crafts.

"Now now Jessie, don't be so bitter because no one loves you." Meowth shrugged its shoulders.

"Wobbuffet!"

Jessie hovered over the two pokemon, giving them a glare, "Good luck sleeping tonight." She gritted through her teeth. Meowth had the nerve to constantly tease her for the last awhile. It supposed it was feeling a bit superior for some reason.

"Oooh!" James scurried off to his teammates in excitement, "I just got us a job!"

"A job?" Jessie asked.

"The lady at this booth runs the gift wrapping station, and needs some extra helpers!"

"I don't want to wrap gifts!"

"But we need money for food, we're broke!" James pouted. He pulled out his coin purse, undid the button and held it upside down. Nothing but fluff candy wrappers fell out.

"I guess you're right..." Meowth said doing the same thing, "I'm all out."

"Ugh... But you guys are doing all the wrapping!" Jessie reluctantly agreed as she crossed her arms over her chest.

* * *

"What's that supposed to mean!?" A girl yelled out in anger, "Are you saying that I'm not good enough!?"

Ash and the gang averted their attention to the commotion happening on an open field a few meters next to them. There was a girl and a boy, not too much older than them having some kind of quarrel.

"I didn't mean that-" The boy tried, "I just-"

"Just forget it!" The girl with black short hair yelled out in anger before storming off.

The group of heroes watched as the boy fell on his knees.

"Are you okay?" Serena was the first to walk over. The boy had blonde spiky hair with blue eyes. He wore a simple black shirt with dark blue jeans.

"Yeah I'm fine..." He sighed.

"You don't look fine." Clemont said analyzing his behavior.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Serena asked.

The boy fell on his butt, startled from Serena's assumption "What makes you think that!?"

"Well... It's a love festival I just assumed..."

"She's not my girlfriend... We've known each other since we were kids, and I've always liked her." The boy admitted, "And now she's leaving to explore the world starting off with the Unova Region to become a better Pokemon Groomer." He paused for a second, a hurt look taking over his eyes, "I want to tell her how I feel before she leaves but when I'm around her I get so nervous...and I say something that makes her upset..."

"That's so sad." Bonnie said with sympathy.

"That is a bummer..." Ash agreed, despite the fact that he couldn't fully understand his feelings.

"Pi-Pikachu..."

"I know what you mean..." Serena mumbled, sharing the same look as the boy in front of her. She knew that her time with Ash was slowly reaching its end, "I'm going to help you!" Serena stood up straight with a look of determination on her face, "I'm going to make sure that she leaves, knowing your feelings!"

"I don't know if-"

"No negative thoughts! I am going to make sure that you win that girl!"

"Me too! I want to help!" Bonnie said waving her arm up in the air.

"Nenene~!"

Ash took a step back in surprise as he stared at the honey blonde haired girl in front of him. His heart began to beat much faster seeing her look so determined and focused. He loved seeing her dedicate herself to a certain task, it made him admire her even more.

* * *

"I have the perfect idea!" Serena said, standing up from one of the few picnic tables that were lying around the area. After a few introductions the group took a seat at the nearest table brainstorming ideas that could possibly help Andy with winning his childhood friends heart, "Why don't you give her a gift with a red ribbon?!"

"That's a great idea!" Bonnie agreed, "She'll see it and be surprised, and then you can confess your feelings to her!"

"You think that would work...?" Andy asked embarrassed. He felt kind of weird getting help from a bunch of kids.

"Of course it will!" Serena said, "What does she like?"

"Err... well." Andy paused before reaching into his pocket, "I wanted to give her this." He said pulling out a small round object.

"No way..." Ash said exasperated, "Is that a mega stone!? Which pokemon is it for?!" Ash asked admiring the stone.

"Pika?!"

"It's for an Altaria. She's been looking for one for ages, and I found one for her."

"That's a really thoughtful gift." Clemont said pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, "May I borrow it for a short while? I can polish it and make it into a necklace for her Altaria to wear."

"That would be nice... I think she would like that." Andy agreed, handing him the mega stone.

"I can make you guys a dinner to brighten up the mood!" Cilan suggested already planning the perfect meals in his head.

"And Serena and I will help you with your confession!" Bonnie added before turning her head to look at Serena, "I know that's something you should be working on." She gave her a wink.

Serena gave her a glare before turning to look at Ash, "Ash did you want to join us?"

"Sure..." Ash bit his lip. Romance wasn't his strong suit, but he was willing to give it his best shot.

* * *

Ash walked away from their designated area after hearing a few stories of how Andy began to like Annabell. As much as he wanted to help with his confession, he didn't have the slightest clue as to what it even meant to be in love, so he offered to buy everyone snacks just so he didn't have to sit there feeling so useless.

"Do you know what love is?" Ash asked his favorite companion who was sitting on his shoulder.

"Pika... Pika... Pikachu?"

"It's okay buddy..." Ash sighed, petting Pikachu on its head, "I want to help Andy too, but I just don't really get the term..."

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu stood up straight, pointing straight ahead at Cilan who was starting on his first dish.

"You think Cilan would know?"

"Pikachu..."

"I guess it's worth a shot." Ash said heading in the direction of the pokemon connoisseur, "Hey Cilan!" He called out, getting Cilan's attention.

"Oh Hey Ash!" Cilan waved to the boy, "How's the confession going?"

"It's going great..." Ash said as he watched Cilan chop up a few veggies, "But I'm having an issue..."

"What is it?"

"I want to help out Andy, but I don't really understand what it means to be in love."

Cilan placed his knife on top of the cutting board before stroking his chin, "Hmm..." He began, trying to find the right words to explain the meaning, "Love is a wonderful thing Ash! Think of it as... this bowl of Gazpacho I'm going to make for their romantic dinner."

"Uhh... Okay?"

Cilan began to point to all the ingredients he had laid out on the table, "On their own they all taste plain, but together they bring out each other's unique flavor, making an excellent and appetizing dish that creates a superb tastes that leaves a sensation of fireworks exploding in your mouth!"

"What...?" Ash blinked, not wanting to feel fireworks explode in his mouth.

"If you add some salt, and oregano... the combination of flavors will become much more delicious!"

"Pikachu..." Pikachu facepalmed as it watched Cilan ramble on about food.

"I don't think he's talking about love anymore..." Ash mumbled to Pikachu, "I'll just go ask Clemont..." Ash said but Cilan was too busy explaining his passion for food to even notice Ash leave.

* * *

"Hey Clemont!" Ash called out after wandering around the area in search of the older sibling from Lumiose City.

"Oh hey Ash!" Clemont waved Ash to come over, "What do you think?" He asked as Ash took a seat in front of him at another picnic table.

"That looks awesome!" Ash said admiring the necklace that Clemont made to fit around Altaria's neck. The stone was being protected by a clear heart shaped casing, keeping it intact at the center, as it dangled from a silver chain.

"Can you give it to Andy while I clean up here?" Clemont asked as he stared at his mess.

"Sure..." Ash replied, placing the necklace in his pocket, "Can I ask you a question?"

"What is it?"

"Well... I want to help Andy with his confession, but I don't really understand the meaning of love..." He admitted rather shyly, "What do you think it means Clemont...?"

"Hmm..." The blonde haired boy squinted his eyes, trying to formulate an answer, "I suppose its when you like someone more than a friend, but different than how you feel about your own family members."

"What does that mean?"

"Well..." He paused, "Bonnie is my sister, and I love her and would do anything a big brother would do to keep her happy... and I suppose I could say I love Serena like a sister too, but not in the same way as I do Bonnie..." He paused again, confusion taking over his face as he scratched his temple, "You know Ash... I'm actually not sure as to how I could explain it. I've never been in love before nor do I read much about it... all I know is that it makes people happy when they find the right person."

"It's alright." Ash sighed, "Maybe I should have joined you or Cilan when we were choosing our roles. Serena and Bonnie have been doing all the work... I just didn't want to feel so useless."

"Why don't you ask Serena? She seems like someone who would know a lot about it. She does read all those romantic novels on her spare time."

"I guess that's true..."

* * *

"I think this is one of our best plans ever if I do say so myself!" Jessie said, opening a box of chocolates before stuffing it in a bag.

Meowth opened up another box that contained a necklace, "We can make a fortune off this!" It said stuffing the article of jewelry into a separate bag before wrapping the now empty container.

After a short while Team Rocket has come up with the plan to steal all the gifts from its original container, then wrap the empty box. They told people to come back after 5PM to pick up their gifts, but after that time they were going to be long gone, and no one would be able to come back and complain.

"We should be leaving soon." James said checking his watch, "We don't want to be here when things become a mess."

"Of course!" Jessie said, sneakily stuffing a watch into her pocket, "But in the meanwhile let's keep stealing things. I see a big group heading our way!"

* * *

"Hey guys!" Ash walked back to the picnic table where Serena, Bonnie, and Andy were still sitting.

"Ash!" Bonnie called out before frowning, "Where's our snacks!?"

"Nenene!"

Ash bit his lip, "I guess I got sidetracked from all of the booths..." He chuckled before reaching into his pocket, "I saw Clemont and he told me to give you this though..." He said handing over the necklace to Andy.

Andy stared at the polished stone through the transparent casing, "Wow..." He said astonished, "This looks great. Annabell will love this!"

"That is really pretty!" Bonnie leaned over, admiring her brothers craftsmanship, "Why don't we find it a box, and bring it over to the gift wrapping station?!" She suggested, tugging on Andy's sleeve.

"You guys are just full of ideas aren't you?" He stood up from his seat, "I guess we'll see you guys later then."

"You should help Serena with the confession Ash!" Bonnie said following behind Andy, "Bye!"

Ash stood there awkwardly, staring at Serena who was busily writing away on a notepad. He took a seat beside her, looking at all the notes she made on a separate piece of paper, "I'm sorry I'm not much help..." Ash said nervously.

"What?" Serena said surprised as she put her pen down, "What makes you say that Ash?" She turned her head to look at the raven haired boy.

"I'm not really good with romance... I can't really offer any kind of help or advice..."

"I don't mind. It's not like I know anything that can help you with your training."

"I guess, but I still want to at least understand what it means to be in love..." He sighed, "Clemont told me that you might know..."

"Me?" Serena's face turned red as she used her index finger to point at herself, "What makes you think that!?"

"Because of all those romantic books you read..."

"Oh right..." Serena cleared her throat, "Well I'd say that being in love isn't as complicated as it seems..."

"What do you mean?"

"Well...When you first like someone, whenever you're near them your heart starts to skip a beat, and you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. When you're away from them all you ever do is think about them, and wonder about when you're going to see them again." Serena gazed down at her notepad, holding her hand up to her chest, as she scrunched on the blue ribbon that she sewed to her dress, "You soon want to get to know that person... everything about them, and at one point you'd do anything to keep them happy, because seeing them happy also makes you happy. Even when you're sad or even angry, that special someone seems to always put a smile on your face the second they give you their attention..."

Ash chewed on his lip as he stared at Serena who continued to explain the feelings of love to him. His face turned red as soon as she glanced up, meeting his eyes.

"But sometimes there are downsides too..." She continued, a sad look appearing on her face, "Sometimes when you're away from that special someone for too long, it starts to hurt. You even get a little bit jealous when someone comes along and threatens your bond with them. The worse feeling though is when they're sad because their happiness is much more important to you than your own..." Serena shook her head before look away, "At least that's kind of an explanation of it..." Serena chuckled nervously before organizing the pieces of paper that were lying around the table.

Ash continued to stare at the honey blonde haired girl, trying to process the information that she just told him. Everything she just said to him felt strangely familiar.

"What happened to my gift!? It's missing!" Ash broke out of his thoughts to see that a few people around them were all having the same troubles.

"What's going on?" Serena asked as she watched a few people open up their gifts to find nothing inside.

"I don't know..." Ash replied, "I think it has to do something with the gift wrapping booth... Let's go check it out!"

* * *

"What's going on!?" Serena asked as her and Ash joined Bonnie, and Andy who were standing in front of the gift wrapping station.

Bonnie pointed to the booth that was now empty, "The gift wrappers stole everyone's gifts including Andy's! We just gave them the necklace to wrap and then a mob of people came by to complain, but then they disappeared!"

"What am I going to do!?" Andy said with a sullen look, "I tried so hard to find her that mega stone!"

"They couldn't have gotten too far away!" Ash said, finding a few footprints behind the booth, "Let's go!" He said pointing to the tracks.

The group of friends followed the tracks, eventually leading them to an open field in the forest.

"Team Rocket!" Ash said out loud, coming to a halt, "I should have known!" He watched as the trio began to stuff a bunch of bags into their hot air balloon.

"Team Rocket?" Andy asked, staring at the trio.

"They're a bunch of bad guys who like to steal other peoples pokemon!"

"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie began the annoying motto.

"And make it double!" James added.

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all peoples within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"

"Meowth that's right!" Meowth jumped in front of the malicious duo.

"Not you again!" Ash called out, annoyed by Team Rocket's need to constantly follow him and his group of friends.

"Give back my Altarianite!" Andy shouted with anger.

Jessie pointed to the necklace dangling around her neck, "Oh you mean this? I think the boss would be pleased if I handed this over to him."

"It's not yours! Go get your own!"

"I just did, and it's hanging around my neck!" She said before sending out her Gougeist into battle, "Shadow Ball!"

"Pikachu! Electro Ball!" Ash commanded. Pikachu was quick to jump into the air, countering the attack.

"Alright Absol you too!" Andy sent his pokemon into the battle.

"Hurry you two!" Jessie yelled out to her companions to hurry with loading their basket with the stolen goodies.

"We're going as fast as we can!" James cried out loud.

Serena leaned over, whispering into Bonnie's ear, "Let's go create a tear in their balloon, so they can't leave."

Bonnie nodded her head as the two sneaked around the battlefield, ready to complete their mission.

"Absol, use Night Slash!" Andy commanded as his Absol aimed it's attack.

"Wobbuffet you know what to do!" Jessie instructed.

Wobbuffet jumped into the middle of the field using it's Mirror Coat to reflect the attack. Ash and Andy jumped out of the way, falling to the ground.

"Pikachu Iron Tail! Let's go!"

"Absol Night Slash one more time!"

The two attacks headed towards the Team Rocket gang.

"Wobbuffet once more!" Jessie commanded, her pokemon reflected the attack once more, "Why isn't the balloon blown up yet!? We have everything!"

"It won't blow up... I think there's a tear-" James stopped before noticing the two girls standing at the side of their balloon with Pancham standing next to them. The girls stuck out their tongues at the Rocket trio.

"And we haven't even made it up into the air..." James sighed, ready to give up.

"Alright Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded.

"Pika... Chuuuuuuu!" Pikachu sent a jolt of electricity to the team, sending them high up into the sky as the stolen gifts began to rain around the area.

"We're blasting off again!"

Andy ran around the area, his eyes set on the necklace that was falling to the ground. He grabbed it in the palm of his hands before letting out a sigh, thankful that it was still in good condition.

"Andy? You found the gifts?" He heard Annabells voice behind him.

"Annabell?" He questioned, turning around to face her, "Annabell... I'm so sorry for earlier..."

"It's okay... I guess I've just been stressed out with packing..."

Ash, Serena, and Bonnie stopped gathering the stolen goods falling around them to stare at the two childhood friends apologize to one another. They watched as Andy handed her the Altarianite, leaving Annabell absolutely speechless.

"Annabell... I love you..." Andy continued, confessing his feelings to the girl in front of him.

"I guess he didn't need the speech after all..." Serena said, happily staring at the couple in front of her.

"Talking it out with you two must have helped him a lot." Ash said smiling as he stared at Annabell reciprocate her feelings as she kissed Andy on the lips.

* * *

Ash stared at Annabell and Andy who were enjoying their romantic dinner with Cilan as their waiter. He smiled before turning his attention to Serena who was handing out the remainder of gifts to their rightful owners. He continued to stare as Serena's explanation of love began to replay in his mind. _Heart starts to skip a beat... warm and fuzzy..._ He chewed on his lip, noticing that he seemed to experience those symptoms whenever he was near her. _...all you ever do is think about them, and wonder when you're going to see them again..._ He began to think of the time when she left with Bonnie for a girls day out, and how much he wanted her to be there with him when he trained. He started to think about how it drove him crazy when she went on a date with Daniel, or how she spent her time at Valerie's office all night, making him worried. It drove him even more crazy when Calem confessed his feelings to her, claiming that he was going to win her heart... And just like that, it hit Ash. He never noticed for the longest time, but now he knew...

"Ash!" Serena called out, running towards him, "The fireworks are going to start soon."

"Huh?" He shook his head, feeling his heart beat much faster than before with his sudden realization.

"Let's go join the others!" She said grabbing his hand, "They found a good spot!"

"Yeah... Of course!" He said, his eyes glued to the girl who was leading him up a hill.

And during the fireworks, he couldn't help but stare at the honey blonde haired girl who was looking up into the night sky, admiring the colorful explosions. He tried his best to focus, but he just couldn't take his eyes off of her.

 _I think I'm in love with Serena..._ He thought to himself as he continued, entranced by her beauty.

 _And after a lengthy period of time, Ash finally realized his feelings for Serena. Will he confess his feelings to her or will Serena beat him to the punch... or will they just remain friends? As the journey continues!_

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **The Lover's Cave: A Blooming Romance:** Bonnie comes across a tourist attraction when reading a brochure – The Lover's Cave; according to legend the cave was made by two lovers who met up in the cave every night because of their families who did not support their relationship. The lovers have created an endless amount of tunnels making it hard for anyone to find their secret hideout – a beautiful hot springs. It is said that only true lovers will be able to find it.


	8. The Lover's Cave: A Blooming Romance

**A/N:** Yess, you guys guessed right! **(MysteryG13 & Amethyst The Purple Dragon)** This chapter is inspired by The Last Airbender. It is one of my fave shows! I hope you guys have checked out The Legend of Korra too! haha

 **TO: pcc6289:** Thank you so much! I'm a silent reader too. It's great to see that you liked it so much to leave a comment. :)

Thank you once again to everyone else who reviewed the chapter **(NerdyAnimeOtakuGeek, Tenzalucard123, DrafteeDragon, Guest, doc boy, Sonic, UltimateCCC, FantasyLover88)** Y'all are wonderful and I hope you have a great week!

* * *

 **Summary:** Bonnie comes across a tourist attraction when reading a brochure – The Lover's Cave; according to legend the cave was made by two lovers who met up in the cave every night because of their families who did not support their relationship. The lovers have created an endless amount of tunnels making it hard for anyone to find their secret hideout – a beautiful hot springs. It is said that only true lovers will be able to find it.

* * *

 **EP 08: The Lover's Cave: A Blooming Romance**

 _Once upon a time, in what is now known as Laverre City, there lived a young and beautiful woman named Lin. She was the youngest daughter to the wealthiest and most powerful family in all of Northern Kalos. One fateful day when she was visiting the newly built hot springs she met a young and dashing servant named Lay, who made her heart skip a beat the second she laid her eyes on him._

Serena finished reading the short introduction to The Tale of Two Lovers, "That's it?" She asked with disappointment, flipping the brochure over as she tried to find the next part to the story, "Does Lay fall in love with her too?"

"It's interesting isn't it?!" Bonnie pointed out before grabbing the brochure from Serena's lap. She ran over to her brother, waving the piece of paper in front of his face.

"Bonnie!" Clemont groaned, trying to properly referee the battle that was going on between Ash and Cilan. Clemont heard Ash command his Talonflame to use Steel Wing before hearing Cilan tell his Crustle to dodge, "Bonnie! I'm trying to watch the battle!" He said angrily before hearing an explosion, followed by one of the pokemon being slammed hard onto the ground.

"Ash and Talonflame win!" Bonnie was quick to say before once again waving the brochure in front of her brother's face, "Will you please look at it now!?"

"You're not giving me a choice are you?" He snatched the piece of paper from his sister's grip.

Cilan and Ash walked over to the siblings, interested in what Bonnie's been going on about for the last fifteen minutes.

"What is it?" Cilan asked as Serena was the last to join them.

"It's a cave..." Clemont said after reading the title of the brochure – The Lover's Cave, "There apparently seems to be some kind of myth revolving around two lovers who built the tunnels..." His eyes began to scan the words on the paper, "… According to legend, there's a secret hot springs somewhere in the cave, but no one's been able to find it for decades."

"That does sound interesting." Cilan said before looking down to Bonnie, "I'm guessing that you want to try and find the hot springs?"

"Yes please!" Bonnie stretched her arms above her head, "We've been doing the same thing everyday! It's time for some adventure!"

"I want to hear more about the love story." Serena agreed, "I can just go with Bonnie if you want to continue with the training."

"I don't mind going! I'd love to go!" Ash was quick to say.

Clemont shrugged his shoulders before turning to look at his sister, "Well I guess it's settled. Let's go."

* * *

Serena looked up from her handheld device to see the entrance of the cave surrounded by tourists and families taking pictures all around it, "We're here!" She announced before tucking her handheld device back into her backpack, "I'm going to check out that booth and see if there's anything we need to know before going in."

"Okay." Bonnie replied with a big smile plastered on her face, "Big brother!" She began tugging on his sleeve, "Take a picture of me in front of the entrance with Cilan!"

Ash watched as Bonnie started dragging the two boys to the entrance. He chuckled before turning his head to look at Serena who was on her way to the information booth, "Serena!" He called out, "I'll join you!" He blushed before sprinting to the honey blonde haired girl who was already halfway there.

"Good morning you two!" A man with a name tag marked Jacob greeted the two friends, "Are you two lovebirds here to explore the cave today?"

"What?!" Ash and Serena said in unison, both flustered, "We-We're not lovebirds... We're just friends! Our other friends are over there taking pictures!"

"Pikachu..." Pikachu blinked, amazed by Ash and Serena's ability to say the exact same thing in complete sync.

The man laughed, "I'm only teasing you. You two came to me as a pair... This attraction is very popular among couples."

"Oh... haha" Serena let out a small laugh before taking a couple of maps that were lying near the edge of the table, "Is there anything we should know before entering the cave?"

Jacob cleared his throat, "It's very easy to get lost, so make sure to always take a look at the maps. If you do get lost, press the button on this device." He said handing Serena a small square shaped piece of equipment with a red button in the middle, "If this light here blinks green, that means our rescue squad has gotten the signal, and will be on their way... But please only use it if it's an emergency." He finished off, starting to remember the times a bunch of hooligans would press it just for fun.

"Don't worry." Ash grabbed the device from Serena's hand, "We're pretty responsible..."

"In that case I should be holding onto it." Serena giggled, taking the device from Ash's grasp, "You tend to lose things quite easily..."

Ash hesitated. She was right, that same morning he seemed to have misplaced his hat, but Serena remembered that he stuffed it in his bag the night before. "I can't argue with you there..." He scoffed before returning his attention to Jacob, "Has anyone ever found the hot springs?"

Jacob rubbed his head, "I don't know how such an old story remained popular over the years... To be honest, I'm not even sure if any of it is real. The tunnels were made so... intricately... No pokemon could have created such a labyrinth... The hot springs is another story... There's not much proof about its existence."

"In that case, I'm more determined than ever to find it!" Ash said, holding his fist up in the air.

"Pi Pikachu!"

"Good luck to you and your friends then!" Jacob called out as he watched Serena and Ash turning their backs away from him, eager to start their hunt, "And if you're interested in knowing more about the pair, make sure to read the writings on the walls!"

"We will!" Serena called out, waving to the man, "Thank you!"

* * *

"The twerps are going into the cave." James pointed out, looking through his binoculars, "Should we follow them?"

"No I think we should try something else..." Jessie replied, distracted by the area located above the cave.

Beside the cave was a steep trail that continued upwards into what looked like Hydreigon territory. Jessie's face lit up with yet another idea as she continued to watch a herd of Hydreigon crowd around a much larger group of Zweilous' and Deino's.

"I think I know what you're up too..." Meowth replied with a sly grin spread across its face. It already knew what today's devious plan entailed.

* * *

 _Smitten by Lay's warm-hearted personality, and drawn by his knowledge of the world around him, Lin went to the hot springs every day during her spare time to hear more about Lay's life and the many things he has encountered. On the other hand, Lay patiently awaited for Lin to return everyday as his usual customer. He found that Lin was nothing like the other wealthy women around him. The other women only took interest when it was time for him to fetch their robes, or when they wanted to hear about any kind of gossip. Lin was nothing of the sorts. She was a kind, attentive woman who truly took interest in his life in the lower class. She didn't treat him as someone who was beneath him. She saw him as a human being who was her equal which made him want to see her more._

"You really like romantic things don't you Serena?" Ash asked, standing next to the honey blonde haired girl who was busily reading the next part to the story that was carved into the walls of the cave.

Bonnie was busily getting Cilan to take pictures of Clemont in the cave for future purposes of showing them to any possible future wife. All you could hear in the background were the two siblings bickering with Cilan laughing beside them.

Serena turned her attention to look at Ash, "My mom read a lot of fairytales to me that involved a lot of love stories between a prince and a princess. I guess romance just grew on me." She replied shyly.

"Then we should find you the next part of the story..." Ash smiled at her, before taking a look at the map, "The next part isn't too far of a walk..." He tucked the map into his pocket before lending a hand out to Serena.

Serena blushed, staring at the boy in front of her. _What's gotten in Ash? Usually he would be the one to explore the cave on his own, leaving all of us to try and catch up to him..._ She placed her hand on his palm as Ash began to lead her down another tunnel, "Cmon you guys!" He called out to the trio, "I think there's better lighting down this tunnel!"

"That would be great! We'll get as many pictures as we can!" Bonnie jumped up in joy.

"Nenene~!"

Clemont groaned, "Ash! Don't encourage her!"

 _Lin and Lay both knew the consequences of getting into a romantic relationship with someone who was not apart of their class. The two were so deeply in love though, that they decided to see one another in private. When no one was looking, the two would meet up in the supply closet for a short filled hour of romance. This continued on for awhile, but it didn't end well as the pair eventually got caught._

 _Devastated, Lin was no longer allowed to return to the hot springs and had a few guards now ordered to follow her wherever she roamed. Lay on the other hand suffered much worse consequences. His family disowned him, he lost his job, and was thrown out of the city._

 _One day, after a few months, Lin was running out into the forest, tired from the lack of privacy from her guards. She came across an Espurr who looked lost. She tried her best to talk to the psychic pokemon, but it only seemed interested in walking away from her. She followed it until she reached a cave to see another Espurr standing beside the man that she loved. Lin cried, sad to see that Lay was living in the forest, but happy to see that he was doing exceptionally well. The two talked for as long as they could, rekindling their love and devising a plan to make it work._

 _Once a week, Lin would take a stroll around the woods with her guards, claiming that it was an activity she enjoyed doing with her new pokemon - Espurr. In reality, Lin would search for the small notes that Lay carefully hid around the forest. The two exchanged love letters for awhile, until Lin could no longer take the pain of being away from the man that she loved. She decided to run away from home, and live her life with Lay in the forest. She did exactly that, and the two created their home in the cave, along with their two Espurr's – creating a secret hot springs, so no one would be able to find them._

 _No one is sure if the two lover's spent their entire life in the cave or if the two Espurr's are still roaming the tunnels. Still, the story of Lin and Lay still remain strong._

* * *

"I told you this was a bad idea!" Meowth said, taking cover behind a boulder.

"You were the first to agree!" Jessie spat out, pushing Meowth to the side, caring for her own safety first.

"Let's just get out of here!" James said, scared for his life.

The Hydreigon roared, sending a beam of Dragon Pulse straight at the boulder that Team Rocket was using as a shield. An explosion followed shortly after, causing Team Rocket to blast off into the sky.

"We haven't even fought the twerps yet!" James complained, tired of their failures.

"Look on the bright side," Meowth began, "At least it isn't Pikachu's Thunderbolt."

"We're blasting off again!" The trio yelled out in unison.

"Wobbuffet!"

* * *

"I guess we reached the end of the tunnels." Ash said noticing that there were no longer any paths available for them to take.

Serena took a step forward, squinting her eyes. She was trying to find any other notes about the story. She felt like it ended with so little information.

 _Crrrrrr Errrr Graaaaaaa_

"What's that noise!?" Clemont began darting his head from left to right, terrified by the eerie sounds. He took a step behind Cilan, intending on using him as a shield.

The walls around them began to shake, with a few small pieces of the earth above them falling onto the floor beneath them.

"Maybe we should get out of here..." Clemont continued, feeling uneasy.

"Yeah..." Serena sighed, "It is almost time for dinner. If there's anymore time afterwards we cou-"

"Serena look out!" Ash called out as he lunged towards the honey blonde haired girl.

"Wha-" Serena's eyes widened as Ash grabbed ahold of her, the sudden weight bore into her shoulders causing the two to topple onto the dirt.

"Ash...?" Serena quietly uttered his name from underneath her breath.

Ash was busily trying to listen to any kind of noise that would entail another sign of the cave's unsteady structure. He looked down to notice that he was on top of Serena in a sloppy push-up position.

"I'm so sorry!" He said out loud before pushing himself upwards. The sudden closeness to Serena made him flustered, and he fell to the ground, landing on his butt.

Serena stood up, lending her hand out to Ash, "It's okay..." She replied shyly.

"Are you two alright?!" Cilan called out from behind the pile of rubble that separated Ash and Serena from the rest of the group.

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu called out in worry. It was on Ash's shoulder the entire time, but somehow ended up on the side where Cilan, Clemont, and Bonnie were.

"We're fine!" Ash called out.

"Why don't you press the button on that thingy that man gave you?!" Bonnie suggested from behind the rubble.

"I-" Serena began feeling her pockets. The device was no longer there. She scanned the area around her to see that the device was lying on the ground, broken into pieces, "It's broken! It must have fell out of my pocket when I fell..."

"We'll go get help then!"

"I can just use my pokemon to move this pile of rocks." Ash suggested, reaching for a pokeball from his belt.

"If you move the rocks, the cave might collapse." Clemont called out, "We'll go back and find the rescue team. They'll know what to do."

"Alright..."

"Pika Pika!"

"All we can do is wait then..." Serena said, taking a seat on one of the giant rocks that fell close to the wall. She could no longer hear the footsteps of her friends.

Ash gulped, taking a seat next to Serena. They were in a pretty bad situation, but the only thing on his mind now was the fact that he was alone with Serena.

* * *

"Excuse me sir!" Cilan called out to Jacob, the man who was standing at the information booth, "What's going on?!" He asked, covering his ears.

The cries of a Hydreigon were being heard somewhere off in the distance.

"It's one of the Hydreigon!" Jacob pointed out to the territory that belonged to the Pokemon and it's other devolved forms, "They are usually quiet and friendly, but one of them just started to go berserk! We have a rescue team up there trying to get ahold of the situation."

"Well you're going to need a rescue team in the cave too!" Bonnie stomped her foot on the ground, "Our friends are trapped at the end of the cave because of some fallen rocks!"

"Oh dear... That's not good." The man shook his head in disbelief, "I'll send in another squad."

"I'll join them so I can show them where our friends are trapped." Cilan offered his assistance.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu was determined to go back in with Cilan to make sure that its trainer and Serena were going to be okay.

"That would be great... Try to get anyone out of the cave. It might be unsafe to be in there for now." Jacob said as watched a Dragon Pulse shoot up into the sky.

"My sister and I can offer our assistance with the team that's trying to help the Hydreigon." Clemont suggested.

"I don't think that's a very good idea... You're just a couple kids, you might get hurt."

"We've been on a journey for awhile now, we know a thing or two."

"I suppose you can help. The faster the better. We don't want to be losing any customers because of this."

"Don't worry."

The trio went their separate ways, ready to complete their tasks.

* * *

 _What should I say to her? Should I ask her about her day? Maybe what she likes? If she's okay..._ Ash turned his head to look at the girl who seemed to be inspecting the cave for any signs of another cave in. _It used to be so easy... I could talk to her all the time before, why is it so hard for me now?_

"Ash...?" Serena was the first to finally break the silence, "Are you okay?"

"Yes!" Ash's replied in a high pitch tone.

"Are you sure?" Serena turned her head to look at the raven haired boy, "Even during times like these, you're always talking about training and what you want to accomplish... Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine. What makes you think that something is wrong?"

"Because lately, you seem kind of different."

"Different how?"

"You seem a little fidgety, and less focused... is there something on your mind that you want to tell me?" She asked, "Are you having troubles with your training? Did you and Pikachu have a disagreement?"

"Serena..." He stopped the girl from bombarding him with questions, "I assure you I'm fine." He placed his hand on top of hers.

Serena blushed, feeling the material from Ash's glove rub against the back of her hand, "Well... if something is wrong, you know you can always talk to me about it."

Ash looked down, staring at the small space between his shoes, "Why do you care about me so much?"

"Because..." She could feel the warmth emanate throughout her body, "You're important to me, and I want to make sure that you're in great condition when you enter the league."

"Thanks Serena..." He replied in a calm and soothing voice, gently squeezing her hand, "I'll always cheer you on for your future showcases."

"I sure hope you do..." Serena's mind began to race. She has never made much of a move on Ash, but lately, he's been making her feel like she should go for it. She took a deep breath before motioning her arms towards the raven haired boy, pulling him into a hug.

Ash flinched at first, but was quick to relax. He returned her embrace, wrapping her tightly around his arms. He's hugged her a few times, but this time it felt different... it felt more meaningful.

"Where's that light coming from?" Serena asked, noticing a bright pink color flashing on the walls around them.

"Over there..." Ash said, ending the hug. He pointed towards the wall ahead of them.

The pair walked over to the light, holding their arms up to their eyes to protect their vision from getting blinded from the brightness. As they got closer to the wall, the lightness dimmed, revealing a small handwritten note carved upon the rocky surface.

"What does it say?" Ash asked, squinting his eyes to make out the handwriting.

"With true love's kiss, you may enter the hot springs."

"What's that supposed to mean? True love's kiss?"

"I think if anyone were to try finding the hot springs, they would have to share a..." Serena paused. The word kiss was making her feel nervous.

"Share a what?"

"...A kiss with the person they love." It's not like the note was some kind of riddle. It was very much direct, how could Ash not understand that.

 _Share a kiss with Serena?_ Ash thought to himself. He's been having so many dreams of kissing her lately, but he always woke up before the kiss even happened, "Do you want to give it a try?" He slowly eased into the question.

"Wha-What!?" Serena jumped, raising her hand up to her chest to fiddle with the blue ribbon on her dress.

"We might get the chance to see the hot springs!" Ash replied. He definitely wanted to find the hot springs, but he wanted to kiss Serena even more.

"But... it says with your _true love_ Ash." She lowered her voice on true love. Ash meant a lot to her, and she could see him as the love of her life, but to her Ash only ever had pokemon on his mind. To her, love isn't something in Ash's dictionary.

Ash bit his lip. He started to contemplate whether or not he should confess his feelings to Serena. _Is it too early? What if she rejects me and then we're stuck here together... It's not the right time..._ , "Well... It's worth a shot isn't it? Don't you want to see the hot springs too?"

"Of course I do."

Ash stared at the girl in front of him. He could sense that she was nervous. After all, she did tell him that her first kiss meant everything to her, "I know you want your first kiss to be special Serena." He admitted, "I just think you and I are great friends and... maybe sharing your first kiss with me won't be so bad." He continued to stare at the girl who was now twirling a small part of her hair around her finger, "We were supposed to kiss during the play we did back in Lumiose City... Just imagine this kiss as the one we were meant to do during Twilight Princess."

After a long time of intently staring at the ground, Serena looked up meeting Ash's eyes. "I-I guess we could give it a try..." Serena replied, her body starting to feel tense. She held her breath, her ears being drowned by the sounds of her heartbeat.

Ash placed his hands on Serena's shoulders. In his dreams, kissing Serena seemed to easy, but now that he was actually going to do it, he realized that it was so hard. _I've been through much harder things... I can do this..._ He leaned in, closing his eyes. He continued until Serena's scent evaded his nose. He leaned in closer until he could feel Serena's lips pressed up against his. Her lips were soft and supple, just like how he imagined it would be. It was just like his dreams, except it was real.

"I guess it's not working..." She chuckled nervously after the short kiss has ended.

"It was worth a shot wasn't it?" He replied, wanting to kiss her again. How did his constant thoughts about food and training suddenly turn into eating with Serena, training with Serena, doing everything with Serena.

 _Creee Errrrr!_

The two turned their heads to see a part of the wall shift out of place before sliding to the side – creating another tunnel. They could see a slight green light emanating from the end.

"It worked..." Ash whispered, amazed, "Let's go check it out!" He grabbed ahold of Serena's hand before leading the two of them through the newly created tunnel.

* * *

"Dreeeeeei!" The roars of the Hydreigon have gotten much louder the second Bonnie and Clemont reached the top of the hill.

The two siblings stopped to see a rescue team trying to calm the Hydreigon who was destroying the forest around it with it's Dragon Pulse. A separate group was trying their best to keep the rest of the herd calm. The last thing they wanted was for the whole herd to go berserk with their powers.

"What's going on?" Clemont ran up to one of the workers who was sorting through his knapsack, trying to find the right tool to end the poor pokemon's cry.

"There's a sharp object stuck in the Hydreigon's foot, and it's causing it a lot of pain. We're trying to calm the poor thing down, but it won't listen to us." He replied in a calmly manner.

"Perhaps my sister and I could be of some assistance?" Clemont offered before turning to his left to see that Bonnie was no longer standing next to him, "Bo-Bonnie!?" He exclaimed in worry, "Where did you run off too?!" He frantically turned his head from left to right in search of his little sister, "Bonnie what do you think you're doing!?" He called out after noticing her getting a little too close to the Hydreigon.

"This Hydreigon needs help!" She called out to her brother, "I think I know how to calm it down."

"You're going to get hurt!" He yelled out, terrified for his sister's life.

"How could you let her get so close?!" Clemont heard one of the men.

"She's so tiny, I barely noticed!" Another man shot back.

Clemont sighed. Why couldn't she just let one of his inventions handle the situation? He began running towards his sister, readying his aipom arm to grab her the second it was in reaching distance, "BONNIE!" Clemont exclaimed from the top of his lungs after seeing his little sister jump onto the back of the Hydreigon, "YOU'RE GOING TO GET HURT!" He started to run faster; faster than he ever has in his entire life.

Suddenly, he came to a quick halt. The attacks were no longer shooting from the dragon pokemon's mouths. Instead, it remained still as Bonnie continued to caress two of it's neck. Clemont's eyes widened, recognizing the words that were coming out of his little sister's mouth. She was singing the song she created for Squishy or well Zygarde, back then when it was still travelling with them. With a few minor changes to the words, the Hydreigon seemed to be enjoying the soothing sounds coming from Bonnie's mouth.

"Quickly!" A ranger came rushing pass Clemont, with a pair of tweezers.

Clemont continued to watch as his little sister began to sing the song for the second time. A few of the rescuers gathered around the pokemon, carefully removing the sharp object from it's foot.

"Success!" The man yelled out, as another one of the rescuers sprayed a potion onto it's foot.

A smile curved upon Clemont's face as he watched Bonnie jump off of the Hydreigon before running in his direction, "Big brother!" She yelled out, "It's all good now!"

"Don't ever do that again!" Clemont said in a low tone. He was happy to see that his sister was growing up to be quite a great caretaker of pokemon, but he was also incredibly angry because she was his sister, and he didn't enjoy watching her put her life in danger.

"I'm sorry..." She apologized, a look of sorrow on her face, "I saw whatever it was in it's foot, and I just had to do something about it. I'm sorry if it worried you big brother."

"Just... Let me help you next time..." He replied, falling to the ground. Watching her on the Hydreigon made his heart beat so much, it felt like it was going to fall out. That... and the fact that he probably ran faster than the others ever had. If only they were there to see it.

* * *

"Woooow..." Serena gaped, staring at the steam emitting from the round embodiment of water.

Situated at the edge of the newly found area was a decent sized hot spring with stones placed all around it. On the other side was a small waterfall that had water slowly trickling down the walls to a pool of water below it. At the middle of the area was a small, quaint house that had the sun rays beaming at it through the small hole located at the top of the cave.

A few pokemon peeked their heads from behind the few stone sculptures that were nicely placed around the area.

"Do you think they lived here?" Serena asked, staring at one of the stone sculptures that was carved into a woman and a man sharing a hug.

"Yes..." Two voices sounded through their minds, "Lin and Lay did live here."

"Huh?" Serena took a step back to see a few stones levitate from the ground. The stones started to glow an emerald color.

"Whose that?!" Ash asked, taking a step closer to Serena ready to protect her if he had to.

"No one has been able to find this secret place for years..." A male and female Meowstic came from the quaint house, levitating towards the two friends.

"Are you the Espurr's from the story...?" Serena asked, assuming that the Meowstic's were using their psychic abilities to communicate with the two.

"Indeed. Our owner's last wishes were for us to protect this place and make it a suitable habitat for pokemon to live in."

Ash stared at the two Meowstic's, amazed by their ability to maintain a place for such a long time, "What do you mean no one's been able to find this place in years? This a huge attraction for couples and the story says that lovers can find it."

"We use our psychic powers to keep humans from finding this place, but we do give them a chance to enter it by allowing those with a strong bond to come and see it. There may be a lot of couples, but that doesn't mean that they are true lovers. You two seem have the bond that the others do not, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to find this place."

Serena and Ash turned their heads to look at one another, but the second their eyes met they were quick to look away.

 _Ash and I have a strong bond?_ Serena thought to herself. She glanced up to look at Ash who was chewing on his lip, and rubbing his arm in discomfort. _Maybe I like him so much that it got both of us in here. That has to be it._ Serena looked up at the two Meowstic that were hovering above them, "What happened to Lin and Lay?"

"After residing in the hot springs for so long, the two felt like they wanted to explore the world instead of living the rest of their lives in a cave. With the help of the pokemon around them, they were able to travel to another region. We gave them a fragment of the stones floating around the area to keep in contact with them and they told us of the many adventures that they had traveling the world."

"That's wonderful."

A Whismur walked over to Ash, offering him one if its berries, "It seems the pokemon here feel comfortable with your presence." The Meowstic noted after noticing the pokemon who were starting to take interest in them, "You have a few minutes as we can sense your friend and another group looking for you two. We ask of you two, to not tell others that you found this place."

Serena and Ash nodded their heads before playing with the pokemon around them. They admired the statues, and even gotten a good look at the wooden cabin that the couple built. If they had the time they would have taken a dip in the hot spring, but unfortunately their small adventure had to come to an end.

* * *

"Are you two okay?!" Bonnie was relieved to see her two friends walk out the entrance. She ran up to the pair, trying her best to pull the two into a hug, "We were so worried!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu pouted. It was worried for its friends the entire time they were stuck in the cave.

"They're giving out free food as a thanks for everyone's cooperation." Clemont said pointing to the information booth that had Jacob handing out a few bags of food.

"I am hungry..." Ash said, rubbing his belly. "We didn't get to eat much."

"You guys must have been bored..." Cilan said, "What did you guys do?"

Serena's face turned bright red, thinking about the kiss that happened just a few hours earlier, "Uhh... We just talked about our dreams..."

"Yeah!" Ash agreed, sharing the same emotions as Serena.

"Really...?" Bonnie questioned, "Why are you guys acting so fidgety?"

"We're not!" The two shouted in unison, "Let's go get some food!"

Pikachu once again blinked, impressed by their synchronization.

* * *

Serena sat at the edge of a cliff petting a few Deino's that Bonnie befriended during the time they were stuck in the cave. She glanced over at Ash who was grabbing a bunch of leftovers that no one else wanted to have.

 _Could Ash like me?_ A smile curved upon her face as she watched Ash share his food with his pokemon. _Should I ask him? The Meowstic said only true lovers could have found the hot springs... Maybe I should confess my feelings to him..._

"Pancham Pan?" Pancham nudged Serena to eat the rest of her food.

"Oh... right. Thank you Pancham." She smiled at her pokemon before, taking a bite out of her sandwich.

 _Maybe we're just good friends, and it's nothing... Ash can't have feelings for me. He doesn't have the time too._

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Trainer Serena!:** After watching a few reruns of the Pokemon Performers Competition, Serena is determined to start with improving her skills as a Performer; this time wanting to take a different approach. She asks to join Ash with his special training routine, hoping that his kind of training will help her improve in some areas to become a better Performer. The two venture off into the forest outside of Laverre City, but are stopped short by a thunderstorm. The two take refuge in a cabin as Serena is frightened by lightning.


	9. Trainer Serena!

**A/N:** Hey guys! I kind of just realized that I should have maybe named this chapter something else. Oh well. haha, This chapter is shorter than all of the other ones. I guess that happens when you cut out Team Rocket. Anywho, enjoy! :)

 **TO: Guest1:** Sorry to disappoint you. I'm aware that Ash is overpowered and such, but these stories aren't too be taken too seriously. They do take place in the anime, but are just amourshipping stories. I do see that its BW kind of writing, but I just wanted it to be cute stuff with Ash and Serena, thats why theres no Team Flare or Squishy (and I wont be writing about the league). Sorry about that, but thanks for the feedback! :)

 **Thanks to everyone else who reviewed (ManbearPIG01, Guest, docboy, UltimateCCC, Tenzalucard123 (The confession will be in the next chapter - SPOILER lol.) , FantasyLover88). Y'all are great! :D**

* * *

 **Summary:** After watching a few reruns of the Pokemon Performers Competition, Serena is determined to start with improving her skills as a Performer; this time wanting to take a different approach. She asks to join Ash with his special training routine, hoping that his kind of training will help her improve in some areas to become a better Performer. The two venture off into the forest outside of Laverre City, but are stopped short by a thunderstorm. The two take refuge in a cabin as Serena is frightened by lightning.

* * *

 **EP 09: Trainer Serena!**

"...And Aria once again steals the show with her beauty and amazing pokemon!" The lady on the screen complimented Aria on her success as Kalos Queen.

Serena leaned back in her cushioned chair analyzing Aria's moves, and the way she executed them in complete harmony with her pokemon. Palermo's words began to replay over and over in her mind like a record player stuck on repeat. _What am I missing? Should I train differently?_

 _After a short break from Performing, Serena has finally decided that it was time for her to prepare herself for next year's showcase. That morning, she woke up early with her pokemon to watch clips of her performances (and everyone else, especially Aria) to figure out what she needed to become the next Kalos Queen._

Serena began tapping her fingers on her armrest, taking a swig of tea from her mug. She hadn't had the slightest clue about what she needed to do in order to win the title she was so close to snatch away from Aria. She looked out the window to see Ash up and early with all his pokemon, starting off with their warm up exercises.

She continued to watch as Ash and his pokemon began to run circles around the battlefield. _Maybe I should try training with Ash?_ Serena thought to herself as she stood up from her chair, walking towards the window to get a better view of Ash breaking a sweat. Her eyes followed him around the field before Ash looked up, noticing the honey blonde haired girl staring at him through the glass. He began jogging on the spot, waving up at Serena.

Serena's face turned bright red before she ducked beneath the windowsill, her heart ready to burst through her chest, "Gaaah!" She squeaked, pulling her knees to her chest, tousling her hair with her fingers. _"Do you want to give it a try?"_ Now all she could hear was Ash's voice in her head suggesting that they should kiss, and then an image of him closing his eyes as he leaned in closer to her face. Serena placed the tip of her fingers upon her lips remembering the sensation she felt when Ash was kissing her. "Gaaaaaah!" She groaned once more as she profusely began shaking her head causing her hat to fall to the floor. She remained calm and neutral about it for the last while, but it just suddenly hit her like a plane crashing into a tower. It wasn't a dream at all and Ash Ketchum did indeed kiss her, and she hadn't had the slightest idea as to what she was going to do about it. Did it mean he liked her? He knew how important a first kiss was to her, did he take advantage of that just to find the hot springs? Was he that kind of person? These questions were coursing through her mind like wildfire.

"Pancham...?" Pancham and the rest of her pokemon walked over to Serena curious as to why she was acting so strange.

"Brax Braxien?"

"I'm so sorry..." Serena looked up at her pokemon, "I was just thinking if we should try Ash's special training. What do you guys think? Do you think it will help us?"

"Sylveon!" Sylveon wrapped one of its ribbons around Serena's wrist, signifying that it would do anything Serena believed to be a benefit towards their win.

Pancham simply nodded, "Pan Pan Cham Pan."

"Braxien!"

Serena began twirling a lock of hair around her finger. There was a part of her that wished that her pokemon said no. The last few days she's been keeping her distance from Ash because he was making her so nervous and shy, but she also had to maintain some kind of closeness to him or else the others would think that something was wrong. _I need to become a better Performer._ She began to chant those seven words in her head, "Right." She nodded with a stern look on her face. She placed her hat back on her head before managing to stand up on her two feet. _I can do this. I've liked Ash for so long... It didn't bother me much before, and it shouldn't bother me now!_

* * *

Serena slightly peeked her head through the door, watching as Ash continued to do stretches with his Pokemon.

"And.. One and two..." Ash began, reaching for his toes.

"Pancham...?" Pancham began to lightly tug on her cardigan. It tilted it's head, confusion taking over it's face. It hadn't the slightest clue as to what has gotten into its trainer. Of course... none of her Pokemon even knew about the kiss.

Serena bit her lip, "I just... I"

Braxien sighed, giving Serena a gentle push out the door. The honey blonde haired girl stumbled onto the dirt, falling on her butt, "Oww..." She groaned, "Braxien!"

"Serena!" Ash turned, noticing Serena on the ground. He walked over to the girl, offering his hand to help her up again.

Serena's face began to turn a rosy shade of pink, "Thank you Ash..." She grabbed onto his hand.

"Why are you up so early? You usually wake up the same time as Clemont."

"I decided to start on my training as a Performer again..." She replied quietly, not being able to look Ash in the eye.

"Oh that's great!"

Serena caught a glimpse of Ash's lopsided smile. She raised her right hand to her chest, fiddling with the blue ribbon attached to her dress.

"Do you have anything planned?" Ash asked, "Are you going to work on your flips or some kind of combination attack? I'd love to see what you're planning to do!"

"We-Well... I-I" Serena took a deep breath before mustering the courage to look into his eyes, "I was hoping that I could train with you..." She mumbled.

"Hmmm...?"

"I wanted to try your special training." She said much louder, "Maybe it will help me... and my Pokemon."

"Braaxien!"

Ash used the back of his forefinger to itch his nose, "That would be awesome Serena." He smiled, "I don't mind, and I don't think my Pokemon would mind either." He said before turning to look at his Pokemon.

"Pikachu!"

"Haw Haw Lucha!"

The rest of his Pokemon nodded.

"We were planning on training in the forest outside of Laverre City today." He turned back to look at the honey blonde haired girl, "The terrain there is much more of a challenge than a flat battlefield. I think we can accomplish more there."

"I wouldn't mind going into the forest." Serena replied.

"You'll just need to change into a shirt and sweatpants... and a pair of sneakers. I do train with my Pokemon after all."

"That's fine with me."

"Great! Maybe we'll be back by the time Clemont and Cilan are ready to help me out!"

* * *

Serena and Ash ventured off into the forest with their Pokemon. They walked for about twenty minutes until Ash felt like he found a good spot to train. During that time all Serena could think about was the kiss and if it meant anything to Ash.

"So what's first...?" Serena asked, scanning the open area with uneven terrain.

Ash smirked, "We're going to jog for twenty minutes. I already jogged back at Valerie's gym, but I thought I would redo the warm ups with you. I think this is a perfect place for you to jog."

"Why?"

"Because there's been those times when your Pokemon, or even yourself have lost footing on the stage. I think running on rocky grounds will help you with that."

"That's pretty smart..."

"It's nice that you want to try out my training, but I also have to alter it a bit so it works for you." He replied, causing Serena to blush, "At the end of the run, you should try doing a small performance out here without falling."

"Okay..." Serena smiled at the raven haired boy. He was always so considerate about other people.

"Everyone ready!?"

"Pikachu!"

The pair and their pokemon began running through the forest trying to keep their footing as they ran through the dirt, cautious of the bumps and surfacing tree roots. Serena was of course behind everyone else, her mentality of keeping clean was causing her to fall behind the rest. If only Clemont was there, he would be running along beside her or even better, running far behind her.

Serena jumped over a tree root, trying her best to avoid the small puddles of mud that were on the ground. She was so focused on keeping clean, she didn't even notice Ash falling behind the others to stay by her side. He grabbed onto Serena's hand, trying to synchronize himself with her running.

"Huh?" Serena's face flushed as she looked up beside her to see the raven haired boy smiling at her.

"Run at whatever speed makes you comfortable." He said noticing the apologetic look on her face, "I just thought it would be more fun if I run along with you."

"Thank you Ash..." She mumbled before looking straight ahead of her. She knew if she asked Ash to take part in his special training in the past, he would have chosen a few training techniques that best suited her. She just wasn't sure if the Ash back then would slow down for her, yet alone hold onto her hand. She thought he would just turn his head to look at her, and encourage her to keep moving.

They continued running till their time was up, and Serena was quick to do a small performance in the forest. The wild Pokemon watched as she danced at the center. She felt like this small piece of training was actually helping her.

After that Ash insisted that she tried doing a few sit ups and push ups with him to help with building her and her Pokemon's strength. It wasn't easy, but Serena tried her best. He even got her to jump from a high enough cliff, to help her improve with executing her landings.

"You're doing great Serena." Ash complimented as the two plopped down onto the grass, tired from all their training.

"You didn't have to alter your training routine for me Ash." Serena replied, feeling thankful for all his help. She felt like if she kept this up, she was going to do an even greater job on stage, but she still felt like all of this was not what Palermo was referring too.

"We should probably head back... I think Clemont and Cilan are done making breakfast by now. With the two of them around, we get twice the amount of food!"

Serena giggled, of course Ash had food on his mind, "Yeah... I'm starting to get hungry myself." She replied, before feeling a small drop of rain land on her nose. She wiped away the small drip of water, before feeling even more drops falling onto her exposed skin, "It's beginning to rain... We should hurry."

* * *

"They're both gone." Clemont said after checking the entire gym for the pair, "I guess Ash went off to train, and Serena went along with him."

Cilan took a wooden spoon from the counter, mixing his stew, "Those two seem to be getting much closer lately."

"What do you mean? I think we're all getting much closer than before."

"That's not what I meant..." Cilan chuckled before taste testing his recipe.

Bonnie jumped up onto the counter, sitting next to the stove, "My brother is as dense as Ash."

"What are you talking about?" Clemont replied in frustration before watching the two giggle in front of him, "What's so funny!?"

"I hope they return soon though. I don't think they ate breakfast yet, and it looks like it's going to rain." Cilan said taking notice of the raindrops hitting the window.

"I heard it's going to be a thunderstorm too..." Bonnie sighed.

"Is anyone going to explain anything to me!?" Clemont asked out loud, starting to feel ignored.

* * *

Serena and Ash began running through the forest, their Pokemon following behind them. With each minute that passed by, the rain seemed to get heavier and heavier.

"Ahh..." Serena squealed, feeling the cold water against her back. Before they left, she was contemplating whether or not she should bring her sweater, but she decided against it. Now she was running in the rain in a thin shirt.

Ash stopped, turning to look at his Pokemon who were behind him, "Return!" He said out loud, holding out his Pokeballs in the palm of his hands. Serena was quick to do the same.

"Serena..." Ash said as Serena began stuffing her Pokeballs in her pocket, "Here..." He took off his sweater, and draped it around her shoulders.

"Ash... you don't have too. You're going to get sick." She tried, pulling at his sweater.

"No... I'd rather be the one to get sick." He replied, placing his hands back on her shoulders to prevent her from taking it off.

"Are you sure?" Serena raised an eyebrow, "You think you can handle taking care of me again?"

Ash chuckled, "Of course. I did it once, and I can do it again!"

Serena smiled. He was just so sweet. She put on his sweater, and zipped it up, "I didn't think that we were this deep in the forest..."

"Me too..." Ash said scanning his surroundings, "I'm sure if we keep running, we can make it back in time before it gets heavier."

"Or maybe we should ju-" Serena jumped, hearing a crack of thunder. She grabbed onto Ash's arm, terrified by the sounds.

"Pikachu?" Pikachu leaned over, taking a look at Serena who had her eyes tightly shut.

"Are you okay Serena?" Ash asked, his cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink.

"Yeah I'm fine... I'm sorry... I ju-" Serena let out a whimper, hearing yet another crackle of lightning. It sounded so close too. She began squeezing his arm to the part where he felt like it was going to fall off.

"Are you afraid of thunder?"

"What? No!" Serena stammered, letting go of him. She didn't want to show a weak side of hers to him.

Ash slightly smiled, "It's okay if you are. Everyone is scared of something." He said before grabbing ahold of her hand, "I think I saw a cabin earlier around this area..." Ash began scanning their surroundings. He only knew that because Hawlucha left a huge scratch on the tree trunk next to them. His eyes finally came to a stop, noticing a brown roof, hiding behind the trees, "It's over there. I'm sure whoever lives there will let us stay until the storm dies down."

"I'm sorry Ash..." Serena apologized feeling like a burden.

"It's okay Serena..." He smiled, rubbing her head, "If you ask me... it's pretty cute."

"What?"

"Pika?"

"Oh nothing!" Ash stammered, "Let's just go... It's getting worse!"

* * *

The two entered the cabin after noticing that the door was open, and that the place was completely unoccupied. Serena walked around, noticing that it must have been abandoned for quite some time.

"I hope there's some food here..." Ash said rummaging through the cabinets. He managed to find a small bag of crackers and cookies, "I think this is-"

Another loud crackle was heard as it echoed throughout the house.

"Gahh..." Serena panicked, running to the musty couch. She sat down, pulling her legs to her chest as she covered her ears.

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu jumped onto the couch, rubbing Serena's leg.

"Thanks Pikachu..." She sounded muffled.

Ash walked over to the girl with the stale snacks in his hands, "Serena..." He placed an arm around her, "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah... I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine..."

Serena looked up, to see a frown on both Ash's and Pikachu's face, "I'm just terrified of lightning that's all..."

"Why are you so scared of it?"

"Pika?"

"Well..." Serena trembled, hearing the wind rattle the windows.

 _~Flashback~_

 _"Serena dear, I'm going to pick up the tomatoes from Mrs. Deana's house." Grace said, patting the six year old Serena on her head, "And then I'm going to pick up Calem. His parent's are going on another business trip, and he's going to have to stay with us for a few days."_

 _"Again?" Serena whined. She clutched her new doll thinking that she would have to hide it before Calem got to her home._

 _"Don't worry. Mr. Schwartz is in the den practicing on his knitting skills. If you need anything, just call for him."_

 _Serena sighed. She wanted to go out with her mom, but she couldn't because of the rain. Her mom didn't want her getting sick, "Okay..."_

 _"Just play with Fletchling okay?" Grace said, kissing her daughter on her forehead, "I'll be back in less than an hour."_

 _Serena watched as her mom opened the door, holding her umbrella above her head, "Bye mom!" She waved her off as her mom began walking across their lawn._

 _The young honey blonde haired girl turned to look up at Fletching, the bird Pokemon who was chirping right beside her, "Let's go hide my doll before that stupid Calem arrives." She scowled, saying his name._

 _"Fletching!" The bird Pokemon chirped, agreeing with Serena._

 _It followed her into the hall as Serena began looking into each room of the house, trying to find a good hiding spot. Calem was pretty good at finding everything she tried to keep hidden. She needed to put it in a spot where he wouldn't even think to look._

 _Serena peaked her head into her mother's room, noticing that her window was open. The drapes by her window began flapping furiously by the harsh winds, "That can't be good!" Serena said running into her mom's room. She pushed a stool to the wall, and stepped onto it. The cold wind caused the tiny hairs on her skin to stand up, and she could feel the drops of rain hit her face._

 _"Fletching, Fletch!"_

 _"I almost got it!" The little girl grunted while pulling down on the frame. She pulled down as hard as she could until the window was finally closed. She looked out the window, noticing the bolts of electricity flicker through the grey clouds. To Serena it felt like a Water Pokemon was battling with a Electric type Pokemon somewhere in the sky._

 _BOOOM! CRAACK!_

 _"What was that?!" Serena said exasperated as the lights in her home began to flicker. She frantically turned her head from left to right until the flickering stopped, leaving nothing but a small amount of light peering through the clouds, and straight into the room. Everything else was covered in a veil of darkness._

 _"Ahhh!" She screamed terrified by the shadows that were being casted on the walls._

 _"Fletching!"_

 _Serena continued screaming as she ran out of the room, "Mr. Schwartz!" She called out, running into the den. She stopped noticing that there was no one there. The only thing left was his half knitted scarf attached to his knitting needles and a ball of yarn, "Mr. Schwartz!?" She called out once more before she began running throughout the entire house. She could feel her tears stinging the edge of her eyes, scared by the lightning that seemed to got more constant, and louder in the last few minutes._

 _The young girl dropped her doll before running into her own room, taking refuge underneath her covers._

 _"Fletching Fletch!" Fletching hovered above her, telling her that it was going to go look for Mr. Schwartz._

 _"Don't leave me Fletching! I'm scared!" She cried out. She was too late though. Fletching was already out of her room, "Fletching!" Serena began to sob._

 _She turned her head to look out her window, the flash of lightning bright as ever. She began gasping for air, as she continued to stare. Only the sounds of the wind rattling against her window, and the branches close by scratching against the surface of the house were being heard. Something didn't seem right..._

 _CRRRRR BOOOM!_

 _Serena screamed as her window smashed to pieces before her eyes, a big hunk of a branch fell into her room, scattering the pieces of glass all around the floor. The wind, and the lightning was louder than it was before._

 _"MAMA!" She screamed out loud before jumping off her bed to run out the door._

 _The pieces of the glass cut through the sole of her feet, leaving her to bleed as she fell to the ground. Serena began sobbing much louder than before as she crawled her way to the end of the hallway. She pulled her knees to her chest as she tightly shut her eyes, and covered her ears with the palm of her hands._

 _~End Flashback~_

"I sat there for twenty minutes, but to me it felt like hours." Serena said, "My mom and Calem eventually found me in the corner of the hall."

"Where was Mr. Schwartz?" Ash asked kind of angry, "He should have been taking care of you."

"When he heard the lightning he went to check on Rhyhorn to make sure it was okay. I guess when he went to the supply closet to grab a rain cover for Rhyhorn's home, the wind closed the door behind him and he got locked in. He was terribly sorry, but it wasn't his fault." Serena flinched, hearing another crackle of lightning.

Ash pulled Serena close in his arms, trying his very best to comfort her, "Well you have me now!" He said trying to cheer her up, "And Pikachu!"

"Pika Pikachu!"

"Pikachu can just absorb the electricity if you feel like the lightning is coming too close! Isn't that right Pikachu!?"

"Pika!"

Serena smiled, thankful to have someone like Ash and Pikachu in her life.

"Plus..." Ash began, "You also have your Pokemon, and in times like these, they are a great help." He said, pulling out Serena's Pokeballs that were hanging out of her pocket. He tossed them onto the wooden flooring, triggering all of her Pokemon out of their Pokeballs.

"Braxien!"

"Pancham Pan!"

"Sylveeeeon!"

"You're right Ash..." Serena smiled, her body feeling less tense, "I'll always have them by my side." She watched as her Pokemon came to her aide, helping her soothe her nerves. The honey blonde haired girl pulled her Pokemon into a group hug.

"I'll always be by your side too Serena..." Ash said in a calm, soothing tone, "And Pikachu." He added.

"I'll always be by your side too Ash." Serena turned her head to smile at the raven haired boy. Without giving it a thought, Serena sat up, kissing Ash on the cheek. She was quick to turn away, her Pokemon grinning at her. They all understood her feelings for Ash. As much as they all wanted to cheer Serena on for making a move, they kept quiet, and instead continued to keep Serena calm.

* * *

Serena walked over to one of the windows, moving the tattered drape to the side, "Look!" She said in a cheery tone, "It finally stopped raining!" She looked up into the sky, seeing the bright sun peering through the white, fluffy clouds.

"That's great." Ash replied, walking over to check out the weather. He smiled widely noticing the rainbow that appeared before his eyes, "Look at the rainbow!"

"It's pretty..." Serena said admiring the colors of the rainbow. She squinted her eyes, noticing three familiar figures walking in the distance. Her eyes widened shortly after noticing who they were, "Look!" She pointed out, "It's Clemont and Cilan and Bonnie!"

"It is isn't it? I guess they got worried and went looking for us." Ash squinted, focusing his attention to what Cilan was holding in his hand, "It's a picnic basket!" Ash said out loud, "I bet theres a tonne of food in there!" He swung the door right open and began running out into the field.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu began to follow along behind his footsteps.

Serena giggled, "I bet you guys are hungry too." She said kneeling down to take a look at all her Pokemon, "Let's hope there's a lot of food in there."

Serena ran out the door with her Pokemon following along behind her.

"Serena!" Bonnie called out, "We finally found you!"

"Just in time too..." Cilan laughed, "I can tell Ash is pretty hungry." He said as Ash began rummaging through the goods in the basket.

"This bread is so good!" Ash said with a full mouth, "Cmon out everyone!" He threw his Pokeballs up into the air, releasing them all, "It's time to eat!"

Serena laughed along with the others. She looked at everyone and her Pokemon before focusing her attention on Ash. _Thank you Ash. I don't think I would have gotten through this storm without your help. Thanks for reminding me that I'm not alone._

"Cmon Serena!" Ash called out to her, "Let's eat!"

"Coming!"

 _And so Serena found other ways to improve with her skills as a Performer. She even found a better way to get through her fear of thunderstorms, and it was all thanks to Ash._

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Valerie's Request:** After Chespin accidentally ruins the outfits an hour before a fashion show, Serena comes to the rescue and helps Valerie to fix them up. After the show, the Kalos League location and date are revealed and Ash is determined to set off ASAP. Valerie makes a request – asking Serena to stay behind as an assistant leaving Ash devastated. Should he let her go to live out another one of her dreams or should he tell her to stay with him?


	10. Valerie's Request

**A/N:** Hey guys! I just watched The Conjuring 2. haha That nun is terrifying!

 **TO: StreetRacerSam :** Thanks for the reviews. :) Don't worry I'm a pretty silent reader too. I wouldn't say I'm naturally romantic on things... I just read and watch alot of cheesy things. lmaoo.

Thanks to **WolfGirl, doc boy, pokereader, DrafteeDragon, Guest, MoonfallExpress, JayFan67, and FantasyLover88** for reviewing. I hope ya'll don't get haunted by that creepy nun. seriously tho, she was pretty creepy.

* * *

 **Summary:** After Chespin accidentally ruins the outfits an hour before a fashion show, Serena comes to the rescue and helps Valerie to fix them up. After the show, the Kalos League location and date are revealed and Ash is determined to set off ASAP. Valerie makes a request – asking Serena to stay behind as an assistant leaving Ash devastated. Should he let her go to live out another one of her dreams or should he tell her to stay with him?

* * *

 **EP 10: Valerie's Request**

 _Today our heroes are found backstage of Valerie's fashion show, taking in their new surroundings as they learn what it's like to be behind the scenes._

Cilan slightly flicked his wrist, intending to create the perfect wing to one of the models eyeliner, "That should do it!" He said, standing up straight, proud of his work.

"Wow." Calem replied, blinking his eyes, "I didn't know that you were good with makeup too." He turned his head to look at the makeup he attempted to apply to his own model's face. His was pretty mediocre compared to Cilan's model whose face was glowing, "How did you make her face glow like that?"

"Have you heard of strobing?" Cilan asked.

"No... Should I?"

Serena walked into the dressing room carrying her familiar dessert container, "It's a technique used for highlighting someone's face." She said, placing the container on top of a counter. The starter Grass type Pokemon began sniffing the area, the familiar scent of macarons wafting over it's nose.

"How do you know that?" Ash asked standing up from his seat to see the difference between Calem and Cilan's work.

"I'm a Performer." Serena replied, "I should know a thing or two about makeup..."

"That's true." Ash scratched his head. He leaned forward causing both of the models to feel uncomfortable, "To be honest though, they both look the same to me..." He chuckled.

Pikachu agreed, "Pika Pikachu..."

"That doesn't surprise me." Serena giggled, and the pair smiled at one another.

"Well in my eyes..." Calem began, feeling a tinge of jealousy, "I think you don't need any makeup Serena. You're pretty just the way you are."

"Thank you Calem..." Serena turned her head to smile at him, while Ash turned his to give him a glare, "I'm still not used to you giving me compliments, but it's very nice of you."

Everyone's been staying at Valerie's gym for quite some time now. Serena didn't see Calem very often since the Performer's event. Despite rejecting his feelings for her, Calem was still a flirt.

"I'll do anything to make up for the years I haven't been too nice to you."

"That's very kind of you." Serena replied shyly, "I'm going to check on Bonnie and Clemont. Maybe they need help bringing in those boxes Valerie asked for." She waved the trio off before heading out the door.

"A simple sorry isn't enough for you?" Ash gritted through his teeth, his arms crossed.

Calem stuck out his tongue, "Does it bother you Ketchum?"

"My name is Ash! Don't call me by my last name!"

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and stood on the makeup table as the two began butting heads.

Cilan sent the two models on their way to get into their outfits, "I never thought I'd see Ash this way." He chuckled before looking down to Pikachu.

"Pika..." Pikachu nodded at the green haired connoisseur.

"Chespin! Ches! Chespin!" Chespin cried for help as a bunch of makeup clattered to the floor.

Everyone averted their attention to Chespin who was lying on the floor, rubbing its head. A stool laid on it's side next to the grass type pokemon, with opened palettes of makeup and macaron's spread across the perimeter.

"Oh no..." Cilan gasped, terrified as he pointed to the clothing rack above Chespin. Above the grass type pokemon was a bunch of dresses that were covered in glittery eyeshadow and foundation smeared all over it, "What are we going to do!?" He began to panic.

"We got everything!" Bonnie came into the room holding onto a few boxes with Serena and Clemont following behind her, "What's wrong?" She placed the boxes down, noticing the terrified look on everyone's face.

"Chespin!" Chespin ran to its trainer, hiding behind his leg.

"The dresses for the last half of the show are ruined!" Cilan said out loud in despair, "Valerie is going to fire us!"

"Even worse!" Calem began, "She's going to kill us!"

Serena put down her boxes, manueving her way around the siblings. She walked over to the dresses, inspecting the damage that has been done, "It's okay..." She began dusting off the luminescent eyeshadow, "I think we can fix this."

"How?!" The two assistants asked in sync as they began cradling one another, "The show is going to start soon, and we're going to need those dresses in an hour!"

"I just need a sewing machine. We can make this work." Serena said as she teared one of the dresses in half. The two boys stared at the torn dress in shock before fainting.

* * *

The six adventurers made themselves comfortable in Valerie's lounging area, tired from the events that took place a couple of hours ago.

"You were great Serena!" Bonnie praised her friend, "You should become a fashion designer too!"

"Yeah!" Calem agreed, "Valerie loved them!"

Serena blushed. All the praise coming from her friends was making her a tad bit nervous. Valerie's praise boosted her confidence up by quite a bit and it was making her feel awesome. Although, she felt like all of compliments weren't needed. All she did was rip a few dresses in half and sewed them to other halves that weren't stained by makeup. In Serena's eyes the patterns weren't too crazy, and they all matched pretty well together so she didn't see it as a big deal. But, after the show Valerie said that she worked well under the pressure and had an eye for matching patterns together, so she guessed it kind of was a big deal, "Thanks you guys..." She accepted their praise for the billionth time.

"Because you deserve it Serena." Ash replied, placing a hand on her shoulder.

She smiled at the boy who was sitting on the couch next to her, "That means a lot."

"Hey!" Clemont called out, sitting at the couches that were located closer to the TV, "I think you're going to want to hear this Ash! They're releasing some news about the League!"

"Really?" Ash stood up from his seat, running his way over to Clemont in excitement. He grabbed the remote from the Lumiose City Gym Leader and cranked up the volume.

"The location and date of the Kalos League has been confirmed!" The lady on the screen announced as 'Breaking News', "The League will be held between Santalune and Snowbelle City exactly three weeks from now! You won't be able to miss it when traveling between the two cities. I wish every trainer out there good luck!"

Ash jumped up, holding a fist up in the air, "Did you hear that Pikachu!? The League is happening three weeks from now! We're going to have to step up with our training!" The enthusiastic boy began doing stretches on the spot.

Serena giggled, "Ash shouldn't you wait till tomorrow? Aren't you exhausted from the fashion show?"

"Of course he isn't." Bonnie pointed out, "Even if he hasn't had sleep in weeks he would still be this energetic."

"Oh how could I forget."

The six of them laughed before hearing the door creak behind them. Everyone turned their heads to see Valerie walking into the room.

"Valerie!" Calem and Cilan said in unison before bowing down to her.

"Good evening everyone." She said in her usual soothing tone, "There is something I wanted to discuss with all of you."

"What is it?" Calem asked with a slight tinge of nervousness to his voice.

"It's nothing bad Calem. I just wanted to invite you all to my launch party happening at the end of the week. I've got all of the designs ready for my line, and they will be ready for production next week. We should promoting some time next month."

"That sounds exciting!" Serena said, "I can't wait to see your designs all over Kalos."

"Me too!" Bonnie agreed.

"I wouldn't mind attending the party either." Ash said, shocking everyone in the room. He scratched his head not sure as to why everyone was surprised, "Why do you guys look so surprised?"

"Well I would just assume that you would want to leave right away, and get a head start to the League." Clemont said.

"You bet I do." Ash replied, "But Valerie's been great letting us stay here. The least we can do is support her with her launch."

"That's very nice of you", Said Valerie, "That also gives Serena enough time to consider my request."

Serena sat up straight, raising an eyebrow, "Request? What request?" She asked with curiosity.

"I want you to become one of my assistants... Like Calem and Cilan here. I think you would make a great addition to the team."

"Wow... I would love to be an assistant! Did you just need me for an upcoming show?"

Valerie giggled, "I want you to travel with me around Kalos to help with promoting my new line. It will take at least a few months." Valerie said before noticing the look of contemplation on Serena's face, "I'll give you until the end of the party to decide." She finished off before disappearing out the door.

Ash stood there in shock as he watched Clemont and Bonnie congratulate her on her offer while Cilan and Calem began telling her the perks of being one of Valerie's assistants. The same feeling from when Calem admitted his feelings for Serena began to take over his chest. He hoped that was going to be the last time that he was ever going to feel that way. He guessed wrong. _Serena won't leave me... Will she?_

* * *

"Alright Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash issued his favorite companion before averting his attention to Talonflame, "And Talonflame use Steel Wing!"

Pikachu's cheeks let out a surge of electrical impulses as Talonflame's wings glowed. The two Pokemon aimed their attacks, perfectly hitting a bullseye on their targets. The two wooden targets that were attached to a moving conveyor belt fell backwards into a pile of scrap before being replaced by two new ones.

"Great job you two!" Ash said. He wished that Valerie told him about her secret training room weeks ago. It would have been a huge help with his training.

"Good morning Ash!" Bonnie greeted the studious trainer as she ran into the room, her brother lagging behind her.

"Good morning you guys!" He replied before looking up to see that his final traveling companion wasn't with them, "Where's Serena?" He asked, trying his best to not let his smile turn into a frown. Serena's been training with him in the morning for some time now for her own self improvement as a Performer. They did a few warm ups together before doing their own thing. She was only just a few meters away when they did their own training and he liked it cause he could see her. He wanted her to come with him in the morning, but he knew that she was tired from the day before and felt like she deserved to sleep in. Still, he thought Serena would come with the others when they had the time.

"She's with Cilan and Calem! They're teaching her what they've learned so far as Valerie's assistants."

"I thought she didn't accept the offer yet..." Ash scratched his head, turning around to hide his disappointment. He barely got any sleep the night before because of Valerie's request, and because of that, he woke up hours before his usual time and has been training since then.

"She didn't, but Cilan and Calem are excited to have someone as talented as Valerie around them, so they stole her from us when we were on our way here." Clemont said.

Ash tightened one of his fist, "Are you sure it wasn't just Calem who stole her away?" He said under his breath, but not loud enough for the siblings to hear. Visions of Calem just grabbing her wrist and taking her away began to fill his mind.

"If you ask me, I think Serena should spend her time with Cilan and Calem all week for the time being. If she doesn't accept the offer, at least she learned a bunch, and I think it will help her with her Performing." Clemont pointed out, stroking his chin, "You always have to wear flashy clothing as a Performer. Think how great it will be if Serena is able to create her own dresses for the showcases."

Ash stood there feeling a bit guilty. This entire time, he's been thinking about how Serena wasn't supposed to leave his side, and was only thinking of reasons as to why Serena should stay with him on his journey. He never thought about what Serena wanted or what she needed, "You're right Clemont." He replied before looking at the Lumiose City siblings with determination plastered on his face, "We should support Serena. We should go join her and learn what she's learning for support!"

"That sounds like a great idea!" Bonnie jumped up in the air, "I want to learn to sew my own dress too."

"Nenene~!"

The young girl began skipping out the room, "Let's go make our own dress!" She began to sing her words in a short tune.

Clemont began following behind her, "Bonnie!" He called out, "I don't think I want you using a sewing machine, I think it's too dangerous for you too handle!"

"Not as dangerous as your inventions!"

Ash turned to Talonflame, thanking it before returning it into it's Pokeball, "Alright Pikachu... Let's learn to make a shirt!"

"Pi Pikachu!"

Ash ran out the door to catch up with the others. Even if he wanted to learn sewing as a means to support Serena, he was still doing it for his own selfish reasons. He was doing it in hopes that if she learned everything she needed, maybe she wouldn't have to stay because she knew all of it.

* * *

"And here..." Ash's eyes followed Serena who was being dragged across the room by Calem who was clinging onto her hand, "...a bin of scrap fabric in case you want to practice you're sewing."

"That sounds perfect!" Ash shouted out to get Serena's attention away from her childhood friend. He walked over to the pair with the siblings following behind him.

Serena pulled her hand away from Calem, turning her attention to her traveling companions, "What are you guys doing here?" She asked before taking a few steps closer to Ash with an apologetic look on her face, "I'm so sorry Ash. I really wanted to see you train, but Calem insisted that I learn a thing or two, so I'm ready if I choose to be an assistant."

"That's okay Serena. You're always supporting me, It's my turn to support you." He held up his hand, giving her a thumbs up, "Clemont, Bonnie and I thought that it would be a good idea to learn with you as encouragement."

"Pika!"

"Really?" Serena's eyes beamed with joyfulness, "That means so much to me."

Calem crossed his arms, "I don't think Valerie would want a bunch of amateurs touching her stuff..." He scoffed, glaring at the Kanto trainer.

"Nonsense." Cilan said walking through an arched doorway, "Valerie loves it when people take interest in something she's so passionate about. I'm sure she'll be happy to see you guys learn how to sew or even apply makeup."

"Valerie really is the greatest!" Ash said, looking straight into Calem's eyes, "So let's get started. What would Valerie want Serena to do?"

Cilan pointed to a bunch of sewing machines that were nicely organized on top of a few tables with chairs tucked beneath them, "Sometimes Valerie has a lot on her plate, and she needs help sewing a few prototypes. We could start off with the basic kinds of stitches, and how to properly work the machine."

"That would be nice..." Clemont said, analyzing the different dials and settings on the machine. His mind was ready to implode from his lack of knowledge of the drawings printed next to the separate settings.

Everyone followed Cilan to the bin of scraps, grabbing a few pieces of fabric that was large enough for them to work with. Shortly after, they crowded around Cilan at a machine, ready to watch a demonstration of a simple, straight stitch. They carefully followed Cilan's directions as he turned on the machine and turned a few knobs. In a few seconds, the connoisseur applied some pressure to the pedal as he firmly held onto his fabric, and guided it through the foot, "I know that's something you can do Serena, but just to be safe, let's have you do it again."

"That's perfectly fine with me." Serena replied before taking over the connoisseur's seat, repeating what he just did. Within minutes she successfully completed her first task with no problems.

"Wow!" Bonnie admired the straight stitch that was perfectly a fourth of an inch away from the seam, "I want to be just like you Serena!" She said before turning her focus to her brother, "Big brother, maybe I should become a fashion designer like Valerie!"

Clemont squinted his eyes, his focus on the point of the needle, "That's great Bonnie..." He mumbled. Worry took over his face as his mind began to fill with thoughts of his little sister's fingers being sewn together, "I think I'll just watch you Bonnie!" He chuckled, "I don't want to see you get hurt!"

"I won't get hurt!"

"I think that would be for the best." Cilan said, "You're still really young Bonnie, I think having your brother watch over you would be better."

"Fine!" The little girl puffed her cheeks out in anger, "But don't be so bossy!"

"Hey Serena." Ash called out to the young performer as the two siblings began to argue, "Maybe you can help me sew my fabric together."

"Really?" Serena said as she scooted over to another chair to allow Ash to work with the machine, "For once I'm helping you with something."

"What are you talking about? You help me with a lot of things." The boy from Pallet Town turned the knob to raise the needle. He was great with hands on learning and was pretty confident that he was going to get the whole sewing thing down fast. Ash aligned his fabric with Serena's instructions before pulling down on the small lever that caused the presser foot to descend, "This shouldn't be too bad." He said, sticking his tongue out in concentration as he eased his foot onto the pedal.

"Be careful Ash..." Serena warned, "Sometimes you may end up going faster than you want, and-" She stopped as she watched the fabric come together faster than it should, "Keep your fingers away from the cen-" She instinctively closed her eyes as soon as she saw the needle pierce through the skin of Ash's index finger.

"Owww!" Ash winced in pain, trying to pull his finger away from the machine. The needle was still attached, and if he pulled too hard it would rip through his flesh.

"Pikachu!?"

"What happened?!" Cilan whipped around to see the commotion with the two siblings ending their argument to make sure that everything was okay.

"It's no big deal." Ash began as Serena pulled on a tiny switch near the base of the presser foot, releasing the needle from the socket. Ash held up his finger to examine that damage that's been done, "It's nothing bad." He pulled on the needle until it was no longer attached to his skin. Tiny drips of blood slowly dripped from his finger.

"Calem!?" Cilan called out, "You were supposed to be watching them! Where did you even go?!"

"I'm sorry..." Calem said through a mouthful of food as he came in through the arched doorway, "I got hungry. I haven't eaten anything yet..." He slowly moved his hand behind his back as a means to hide the sandwich that he was devouring.

"It's okay!" Serena said, noticing the angry look on Cilan's face, "I have a few band aids and disinfectant in my bag." She grabbed onto Ash's wrist, leading him to the small room where she put her bag.

"I'm sorry Serena." Ash apologized as Serena led him to a couch to sit.

Serena sat on the glass table in front of him, rummaging through her bag for her emergency first aid kit, "It's okay Ash. The same thing happened to me when my mom first taught me how to use our sewing machine back home."

"Really?" He asked as Serena began wiping the dried bits of blood from his finger.

Serena reached over for the disinfectant, spraying it onto his small wound, "Yeah, except I was seven and I cried for hours. My mom thought I was too young to learn, but she finally gave in because I wouldn't stop begging her."

Ash laughed, "I'm glad to know that I'm not that only one who's been through that..." He watched as Serena concentrated on wrapping the pink band aid around his finger. His lips curved downwards into a slight frown as the thought of Serena wanting to learn to sew at such a young age lingered in his mind, "Do you want to stay here and be Valerie's assistant?" He asked, quietly.

"I..." She seemed taken aback by the sudden question, "I don't know yet, Ash. Do you think I should?"

"I know you love fashion, and makeup..." He began in a melancholy tone, "And designing your own dresses would be a great skill as a Performer."

"I know. It also gives me something to do while I'm waiting for the next Showcase... which wouldn't be for a few months."

All of these valid points were making Ash's already growing dread grow faster than it has been since Valerie's request the day before. He wanted Serena to stay with him on his journey, and he felt selfish for thinking that. Deep down, he knew that she would be better staying here. She would learn a lot and grow as a person. She couldn't do that by traveling along with him on his journey. She needed to go on her own journey, "Do what you want Serena. Do what you think is best." He said in a low tone, looking away from her.

"I don't know Ash. I-"

He placed his hand on top of hers, "You still have a few days to think about it. You'll know when the time comes." He said before standing from the couch, "In the meanwhile you should have fun with what Cilan and Calem want to teach you." He gestured for her to follow him back to where the others were, "C'mon." He said as Serena followed closely behind him.

* * *

 _~A Few Days Later~_

Ash stood at the back of the room, eating a bunch of mini quiches from the platter that was already half empty, "These are great!" He managed to say through a full mouth, with Pikachu chewing on it's own quiches beside him.

"Pika Pika!"

"You should slow down Ash." Clemont said, laughing, "They haven't even opened the buffet table yet."

"This isn't it?" He slowly placed his plate on the table beside him as he took a swig of his water.

During the last few days, Ash has been training non-stop with his Pokemon, taking advantage of the time he had left to try out every exercise and machine offered in Valerie's training room. Since his whole sewing fiasco, he decided it was best for him to train instead of learning to sew. The days left to the start of the League was decreasing, and he wanted to be extra ready for when the time came. He wasn't very impressed with his progress though, but at least everyone else suspected that it was his overtraining instead of the reason of Serena possibly leaving.

Serena's been busy learning everything she can from Cilan and Calem, and Ash hasn't seen her at all since the day she wrapped that pink band aid around his finger. He thought it was for the best though. He strongly felt like Serena was going to choose to stick around as an assistant, and he felt that if he spent most of his time away from her, the easier it would be for him to say goodbye.

"So did you really make that dress all by yourself?" Ash asked, admiring the yellow sundress that Bonnie was happily flaunting around in.

"I cut the fabric, and sewed a few parts" Bonnie replied, "Serena sewed most of it though."

"It looks great..." Ash tried his best to put on a smile. Serena was just so good at sewing, there was no way that she would reject the offer.

"Good evening everyone!" Valerie greeted as she walked to the center of the stage, "As you all know, my designs are ready for production." She announced before the room filled with cheers and applause, "The first fashion show will be held here in Laverre City, on the 3rd of next month."

Ash clapped along with the crowd before stuffing another mini quiche into his mouth.

"I know this night is about me, but it is also about those who have been a huge help. I want to introduce you all to a young talented lady who has helped me with my last fashion show... Please welcome Serena!" She walked out of the spotlight, as Serena took her place on the stage, "I hold local fashions shows every few weeks here in my gym, and last week this girl has saved my show, and has been helping me the past few days. Thank you so much."

"It's nothing really..." Serena replied shyly, "I just like to help whenever I can."

"Well... Can you all please give a round of applause for Serena!"

Ash slowly clapped his hands as everyone else in the room cheered Serena on, "I'm going to go use the washroom..." Ash said to the siblings as Valerie began to finish her speech.

"Right now? Serena is headed this way." Clemont said, "We should at least congratulate her on a job well done. She helped with sewing the most intricate dresses that Valerie did not want the factories to make."

"I ate too much mini quiches..." Ash whispered into Clemont's ear, "I don't think you want me soiling my pants here in the middle of the room."

"Oh right! I'll tell her you'll be back then!"

"Thanks..."

Ash ran out of the room with Pikachu following along behind him. He could feel a few tears stinging the edge of his eyes before he came to stop. He stopped by a huge water fountain, taking a seat on one of the benches surrounding it. He wiped away his tears using the sleeve of the suit that Cilan let him borrow. He then stared at the fountain and watched as the water trickled into the large body of water.

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu finally caught up, jumping on the bench to sit beside it's trainer, "Pikachu?" It tilted it's head in concern.

"I'm fine Pikachu... I guess I'm just tired from all that training."

"Pi Pi Pikachu."

"Yeah... I know I should slow down. I'll take a break for a few days. You and the others are probably tired too huh?"

"Pi Pika." Pikachu nodded its head.

"Ash...?" Ash heard Serena's voice from behind him. He turned his head to see Serena standing a few feet away from him, "Are you busy? Can we talk?"

"Pikachu." Pikachu jumped off the bench, sensing that the two needed time to talk alone.

"Pikachu you don't need to go." Ash called out to his companion who was scampering across the field.

"Pika Pikachu!" He understood the words of his best bud.

Serena walked over to the bench, taking a seat next to Ash, "Why are you out here?" She asked, "You should be celebrating inside with everyone else."

"Well I had to use the washroom, but then I left and realized I didn't and just somehow ended up here."

The two sat there in silence, listening to the sounds of the water. They both had a lot on their mind, but wasn't sure as to what they wanted to say.

"Ash..." Serena finally broke the silence that was lingering between the two, "I'm not staying here. I'm going to go to the League with you and the others."

Ash's eyes widened as he turned his head to look Serena in the eye. His heart began to skip a beat, "What!?" He asked in surprise, "Why? You love doing all of this stuff, why would you want to give that up to watch me at the League? You can just watch me on TV!" He wasn't sure if he was feeling happy or angry by her choice.

"Yes, but I want to be there for you when you win. I want to be the first to congratulate you... and..." Her voice got a little softer, "I can't leave you without telling you how I feel." She looked away from Ash to once again stare at the fountain in front of her.

Ash watched as she raised her hand to her chest, feeling for something that wasn't there. He was happy to hear that Serena wanted to be there for him. "What do you mean...?" He finally asked.

"I like you Ash." She said quietly, "I like you more than just a friend..."

"What?" His mind began racing at the speed of light. He could feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins. He looked down to his fingers and watched as they began to tremble.

"Ash, I like you." She repeated once more, this time turning her head to look at him, "I've liked you since you helped me in the woods back at camp."

"Really?" He turned his head, meeting her eyes. He bit his lip, noticing that Serena's face was painted a shade of red.

"Ye..Yeah..." She gulped, feeling flustered by the eye contact. She shook her head before letting out an awkward laugh, "During the past few days I was thinking of how it would be if I stayed here, and I knew for sure that if I did, I had to tell you how I felt. Even when I finally decided to stay with you on your journey, I just felt like it was time for you to know That's why I'm telling you!"

Ash blinked, trying to process what she just said. She spoke so fast, it was like all of the words were being fused together into one incredibly large one.

"Please don't treat me differently or anything!" She finished off before standing from the bench, "I'm going to return to the party now, so I'll just see you later!"

The second she turned away from him, Ash grabbed onto her pinky, "Serena... wait." He said. Serena stood there, unmoving, "I like you too..." He whispered, "More than a friend."

"You do?" Serena whipped around to look at the boy who was bashfully staring at the ground.

"Yeah..." He looked up, giving her a smile, "I like you too."

"I found them!" The two heard Bonnie's voice off in the distance, "You guys they are opening the buffet now! Let's go eat!"

"I hope you still have room in your stomach Ash!" Cilan's voice was heard, "I saw you eating all of those mini quiches!"

"Coming!" Serena called out, running towards the others.

Ash smiled to himself, before glancing over at Serena who was joining the others. He supposed that she was feeling a bit shy after he reciprocated his feelings for her.

"I'll always have room in my stomach!" Ash yelled out.

* * *

"Awhhh... and I thought that I was going to have a chance with you if you stayed." Calem said as he stood at the entrance next to Valerie and Cilan.

Serena giggled, "No always means no Calem, especially between the two of us." She winked, causing the boy to faint in happiness.

"Well we wish you good luck on the League, and we'll be watching it from here." Valerie curtsied before walking back into the gym.

"You know... I know you're a Pokemon Connoisseur, but I haven't seen you evaluate a Pokemon..." Clemont said looking at Cilan.

"Then I promise you, the next time we meet, all your Pokemon will be receiving an evaluation!" Cilan said, holding his arms out in the air.

"Make sure to do Dedenne too!" Bonnie said, pointing to her Pokemon that was comfortably tucked in her yellow pouch.

Cilan reached over, patting Bonnie on the head, "Of course!"

Valerie came back out with a few other assistants who began dragging Calem back into the gym.

"Goodbye everyone, and take care!" Ash said as they began walking down the path.

 _And so, our group of heroes departed from their long stay from the Laverre City Gym, and began taking their first steps to the Kalos League! Will Ash and Serena's relationship progress now that they know each other's feelings? ...As the journey continues!_

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Togekiss:** The group of friends, come across an egg laying out in the wilderness. Ash and Serena are the first to see the egg as it hatches revealing that it's a Togepi. Seeing the two together Togepi views Ash and Serena as its parents and sends the two down a path they can never come back from.


	11. Togekiss

**A/N:** Hey guys! :) Just watched Finding Dory. haha You should watch it if you haven't already. **I have created this chapter as a request from espeon44 way back in Chapter 1.**

 **TO espeon44:** Togepi is indeed a girl (from my POV), but because I call all Pokemon an 'it' in these stories I suppose they are all genderless, so technically you can view it as whatever gender you want.

 **TO Pokemon fan:** Well actually they did share their first kiss in the cave a few chapters back. :) I just didn't really want them to kiss during the confession... just cause... lol.

Thanks to the rest of you who left reviews last chapter! **(doc boy, Guest, MoonfallExpress, ultimateCCC, MANbearPIG01, JayFan67, Tenzalucard123, FantasyLover88)** Hope you all enjoy. :)

* * *

 **Summary:** The group of friends come across an egg laying out in the wilderness. Ash and Serena are the first to see the egg as it hatches revealing that it's a Togepi. Seeing the two together Togepi views Ash and Serena as its parents and sends the two down a path they can never come back from.

* * *

 **EP 11: Togekiss**

High up in the sky, the sun shone brightly as a slight breeze traveling south carried a flock of Cottonee with it. The honey-blonde tucked her tresses behind her ear to prevent it from whipping around in the wind. Said girl lifted her hand to her chest to feel for the blue ribbon that was given to her as a gift by the boy that had just reciprocated his feelings for her the night before. Since then, everything to her was feeling like a dream of complete bliss.

Serena shifted her eyes to the left, sneaking a glance at the raven haired boy who was walking at the same pace as her, a few feet away. For once Clemont wasn't the one that was lagging behind the group. Instead, he was only a few steps behind his sister sharing his amusement with her as they watched the remainder of Cottonee drift by.

 _What should I say to him? Should I point out the Cottonee?_ Serena thought to herself as she continued sneaking glances at the boy who was looking the other way. She looked downwards, staring at her feet as she trudged onwards. Gripping onto the straps of her bag even tighter, she bit her lip in frustration. She wanted to walk next to him and start up a conversation, but she was too nervous to do a thing.

"Darn!" The Lumiose gym leader groaned in frustration.

Serena slowed down as she noticed the siblings coming to a halt in the middle of the trail, "What's wrong?" She asked as she watched Clemont flip his canteen upside down. Nothing but a tiny drop of water trickled out.

"I'm all out of water," Clemont stated before twisting the cap back on his canteen.

"I'm close to running out of water too," Ash said before rubbing his grumbling belly, "And I sure could use an energy boost."

"We should set up for lunch then!" Bonnie suggested, pointing over to the stream that could slightly be seen through the cluster of trees.

"That's fine with me. I too feel myself getting pretty hungry." Clemont agreed as the four of them walked off the trail and headed towards the open field that was not too far from the stream.

Shortly after, Clemont began adding the remainder of ingredients to his boiling stew. Ash was sitting on top of a hill not too far from where they set up their rest area. He was busily keeping an eye on all their Pokemon as they played with one another in the open field. Serena continued sneaking glances at the young trainer while she was setting up the table. She placed a stack of plates on the table before looking up once more to admire the boy who was leaning backwards, burying his palms within the grassy plain. The honey blonde almost dropped the utensils she was grabbing from Clemont's knapsack as Ash caught her staring at him. Her face flushed a rosy shade of pink as she met his eyes. He curved his lips slightly upwards, giving her a soft smile. Serena could feel her cheeks warm up as they turned a deeper shade of pink. His smile was so infectious, she couldn't help but smile back.

"Look!" Sitting at the table Serena's been working hard to set up was Bonnie who was diligently working on cutting a few fruits as an appetizer.

Serena walked around the table to see what the young girl has been up to for the last ten minutes. Sitting on a platter were a few pieces of cut up fruit that Bonnie somehow managed to arrange to look like her hamster like Pokemon Dedenne, "That's so cute Bonnie! You're getting even more creative as each day goes by."

"You think so?" She turned the platter three sixty degrees to admire it from all angles, "I can make your Pancham using rice and seaweed!" She offered before jumping off her seat, "I think I'll go give it a try!" She said before scurrying off towards her brother to check on the rice.

"Oh okay..." Serena said rather startled. There were times where she still felt surprised by Bonnie's immense amount of energy.

"Serena? Can you do me a favor?" Clemont called out, "I've used all my water and yours for the soup. Can you refill them again?" He asked, pointing to the bottles that were laying on the grass a few feet away from him.

Serena placed the remainder of dishes on the table, "Sure." She answered as she placed Clemont's knapsack on the ground next to hers. She walked over to Clemont, grabbing the bottles from the ground.

"Hey Serena!" The raven haired boy began wiping away the pieces of grass that were clinging to his bottoms, "I'll join you. I have to refill mine too anyways."

"Okay." She squeaked. Startled by her own voice, she lifted her hand up to cover her mouth and took a deep breath, "Let's go."

The honey blonde began leading the way to the small pool of water they found earlier on to fill their bottles. She walked next to the stream, listening to the small currents flow onwards as it splashed against the rocks.

"So..." Ash began, breaking the silence. They've exchanged such a small amount words since their little confession. The longer they didn't talk, the more awkward it felt between the two. The raven haired trainer picked up his pace until he was walking alongside Serena, "It's... nice outside... today." He attempted to start a conversation.

Serena began fiddling with the blue ribbon on her chest before mustering the courage to look at him, "It is... It is very nice today."

Ash shifted his gaze downwards to look at her fingers wrap around the ribbon, "Why are you always touching the ribbon on your dress?" He asked with curiosity. He's noticed that she's been fiddling with it nonstop since they resumed their journey that morning.

"Oh..." Serena said startled as she pulled her fingers away from the silky material, "I just..." Her cheeks began to turn a rosy shade of pink, "You gave it to me as a gift... and when I play with it, it keeps me calm when I feel nervous... " She covered her mouth after admitting more than she wanted too.

"You're feeling nervous? Why are you feeling nervous?"

"I'm not nervous I just... uhm..." She stopped walking to think more about what she wanted to say, "I just uhm... didn't think that you'd like me too... and it's... it's still surprising... but great... uhh..." She began flailing her arms out to convince herself that what she was saying was making total sense.

Ash extended his arm, placing his hand on her shoulder, "Serena you don't-"

"Gaah..." Serena jolted backwards, alarmed by the sudden physical contact. The sole of her foot brushed against a jagged rock, throwing her off balance.

With quick reflexes, Ash grabbed ahold of her arm, pulling her towards him. The sudden change of balance caused him to lose his own footing, making the two topple over in the process. Serena pulled her weight off of the ground, sitting with her knees bent and legs to one side. She adjusted her hat as she looked at Ash who was sitting cross legged doing the same thing, "I'm sorry." She said shyly before reaching out to wipe some dirt that he got on his shoulder.

Ash laughed, "Serena it's fine." He placed his hand on top of hers, preventing her from wiping away anymore dirt, "I'm nervous too." He admitted, "I've never liked a girl before, it's all new to me. I don't really know what to do, especially when I know that you like me too. I just I don't like you avoiding me."

"I'm sorry..." The honey blonde apologized, pulling her hand away, "I don't know how to deal with it either, but you were avoiding me too."

"Yeah... I'm sorry, but I did say I'm also nervous." He scratched his cheek with his index finger before pulling himself off the ground. He then looked down at Serena lending his hand to her, "I know this is something new for the both of us, but promise me we'll work on it together."

Serena grabbed ahold of his hand before he hoisted her up from the ground, "Okay." She squeezed his hand as she smiled at him, "Let's go get that water. Clemont's probably done the meal by now." The honey blonde turned around to pick up the bottles she dropped when she was in the middle of falling over. She took a glimpse at the jagged rock she tripped on before noticing a round, familiar object from the corner of her eye. She took a few steps closer to the rock to get a better inspection of an egg with red and blue triangular markings on it, "Ash... I think I just found an egg." She watched as the egg began to move on it's own, "And I think it's going to hatch..."

"What? Really?" The trainer dropped his bottle after just picking it up. He walked over to Serena, kneeling down next to her to examine her findings. Ash gaped as he stared at the markings on the egg. It all looked familiar to him, "It's a Togepi egg." He said with confidence.

"How do you know?"

"I have a friend who found an egg just like it back in Kanto."

Serena and Ash continued to watch the egg as it began shaking much more violently on its own. _Craack!_ A small piece from the hard exterior chipped off revealing a spike from the tiny Pokemon's head. In a matter of seconds another part chipped off, and then another to reveal a Togepi curiously staring at the duo. The cute egg like Pokemon rapidly blinked as it took in it's new surroundings, "Toge Togepriii?" Togepi tilted it's head slightly as it looked up at Serena and Ash in amazement. The tiny Pokemon jumped out of the remnants of it shell before taking a few steps forward to the two curious trainers.

"It's so cute!" Serena marveled as Togepi used it's stubby hands to touch Serena and Ash's shoes. The honey blonde reached into her pocket, grabbing ahold of her Pokedex. She held it above Togepi before the device began processing it into its database.

The egg like Pokemon began jumping on the spot in excitement as it heard Serena's voice, "Togepri!"

"Togepi, the Spike Ball Pokemon," The robotic voice began, "Happiness is stored in Togepi's shell, and it shares its happiness with kind-hearted people."

"I think it likes you." Ash pointed out before Togepi turned it's body to face the Pallet Town trainer to show that it was also drawn to his voice.

"I think it likes you too." Serena smiled as she watched Ash pick up the tiny Pokemon from the ground.

* * *

The infamous Team Rocket took cover behind a cluster of bushes as they peeked through the branches and leaves to spy on the two young trainers ahead of them, "Is it me or does something seem different about those two?" James asked as he spied on the two through his newly upgraded binoculars, "They seem like... they are dating?"

"It does look that way," Meowth agreed, "Who would have thunk that the twerp could get himself a girlfriend. He always seemed so dense in my book."

"I know right," James agreed before the two began rambling on about the many girls Ash has encountered so far on his journey.

"I don't care about the relationship between those two twerps!" Jessie spat out before snatching James' binoculars from his grip, "I'm more interested in that Togepi they just found."

Meowth retreated from its hiding spot and made itself comfortable against the trunk of a tree that was close to them. It folded its arms behind its head, "You're just crabby cause you'll never find love." It teased its female teammate.

"You got that right Meowth." James agreed before sitting next to his feline companion. He took a bite out of a Pecha Berry.

"Oh shut it you two!" Jessie scoffed.

* * *

Bonnie stood atop of the stool squinting her eyes as she used her hand to protect her sight from the blinding rays of the sun. She examined the area, paying closer attention to the dense forest located next to the stream, "I see them!" She hopped off of the stool and pointed at the two familiar figures that were headed her way, "Where have you guys been!?" She called out cupping her hands around her mouth, "You've been gone for almost twenty minutes!"

"Sorry!" Ash yelled out as he ran towards the siblings, "We met a new friend along the way." He said out of breath as he reached the two who were standing next to the table. All of their Pokemon were sitting in a circle on the grass, eager to eat the bowls of food that were placed before them, "Sorry you guys." Ash took note of their Pokemon who were ready to devour their food, "You guys can start eating." He nodded at all the Pokemon before they began stuffing their mouths to the brim with their meal.

"What kind of friend? I don't see anyone else heading our way." Clemont said squinting his own eyes in search of another figure.

Bonnie gasped as Serena neared the group holding the newly hatched Togepi in her arms, "No way!" She said in amusement before running over to the honey blonde, "What Pokemon is that?" She stopped in front of Serena and leaned in close to look at Togepi, "That is the cutest Pokemon ever! Where did you find it!?"

"It's a Togepi." Serena answered, "We found it by the stream and we were lucky enough to witness it hatch from it's egg."

"Toge Toge..." Togepi stared at Bonnie with curiosity.

The young blonde took Togepi from Serena's arms and held it above her head, "You are just so cute!" She complimented before twirling around in circles.

Togepi's face filled with anxiety as the world around it began to fill with distorted shapes of the world around it. In dismay, tears began to sting the edges of the poor Pokemon's eyes before it filled everyone's ears with its cry.

"What's wrong?" Bonnie pouted as she came to a stop, eying the Pokemon with worry.

Ash scooped Togepi from Bonnie's grasps and began cradling it in his arms. In just a few seconds Togepi began to smile.

"Bonnie." Clemont stood behind his sister, placing one of his hands on her shoulder, "It's still a newborn. You most likely scared it."

"It sees you as a stranger too." Ash added as he handed the Pokemon to Serena.

"What do you mean?" Bonnie asked.

"When a Togepi hatches out of its egg it views the first Pokemon or person it sees as its parent and considering that it's a newborn it's frightened by those who aren't its caretaker."

"So are you and Serena the parents? It seems to be comfortable with the both of you." Bonnie pointed out after noticing how it was happy in Serena's arms when they came back, and how Ash easily calmed it down after she made it cry.

Ash and Serena turned their heads to look at one another, "I guess we are..." Ash replied as he rubbed his cheek with his index finger, "It did see the both of us when it hatched."

Bonnie took a few steps forward to look Togepi in the eye, "I'm sorry Togepi..." She apologized, "It looks like you have two great parents though."

"Togeprii!" Togepi said cheerfully.

"We should introduce it to our Pokemon," Ash suggested with excitement.

Serena and the others happily agreed before taking Togepi to the rest of their Pokemon who were nearly finished their lunch.

"Everyone meet our new friend Togepi!" Ash introduced Togepi as Serena placed it on the grass.

Togepi stood there blinking its eyes as it slowly turned its head to take in the features of its new companions.

Pikachu's cheeks sparked with electricity in happiness of seeing a new Pokemon being added to the team, "Pikachu!" Pikachu extended its tiny arm to pat Togepi on it's head. The rest of the Pokemon followed in Pikachu's footsteps and simply introduced themselves with a amiable smile.

"Chespin Ches!" Chespin with its protruding belly strode across the field determined to greet its new friend, "Ches..." The grass type Pokemon huffed as it failed to make it to the center of the circle. It fell over unable to get up again.

"Togepri!" Togepi said in a joyful manner as it hopped on the spot.

"Togepi is going to fit in perfectly." Serena said in complete happiness as she watched it interact with the others.

* * *

After a hearty lunch the gang packed up their belongings and once again resumed their journey. Serena with Togepi in her arms lagged behind the rest of the group as she pointed at the objects around her. She found that Togepi seemed to enjoy her descriptions of nature and all the Pokemon around her. As Serena continued with describing the pine trees, Togepi stared ahead at the raven haired trainer who was busily conversing with the inventor, "Toge..." It cried out silently.

"What is it Togepi?" Serena asked as Togepi jumped out of her arms and began running on its stubby feet towards the trainer from Pallet Town. The newly hatched Pokemon tripped on its feet causing it to roll forwards, "Togepi!" Serena panicked as she picked up her speed to get ahold of it.

"What's going on?" Ash came to a stop with Bonnie and Clemont. Bumping into Ash's leg, Togepi also came to a stop, "Togepi what are you doing?" Ash furrowed his brow in worry. Togepi with its tiny fingers began pulling on Ash's pant leg while using its other hand to point at Serena, "I don't get what you're trying to tell me..." Ash said before kneeling down to pick up Togepi.

Clemont began stroking his chin trying his best to get ahold of the situation, "Considering that It views the two of you as its parents, I would assume that it wants you and Serena to walk together with it."

"You really think so?"

"Is that what you want Togepi?" Serena slightly bent over to look at Togepi.

Togepi simply nodded its head.

"That's fine with me." Ash said as Serena looked up at him. He smiled at the girl causing her heart to flutter. She knew that earlier on she made a promise with Ash to work on their relationship now that they confirmed their feelings for another, but she wanted to start off slowly. Very slowly, like just being able to exchange a few words with another because right now, she could barely handle her heart exploding through her chest.

"Okay..." Serena mumbled in a reserved manner.

Serena took Togepi back in her arms and the group of heroes once again continued their walk down the trail. Ash closely walked beside Serena with his arm brushing up against hers. Safely in Serena's arms Togepi began cheering its name in complete happiness, "Toge Togepri!" It shifted its weight around Serena's arms to face the two trainers.

"Do you think Togepi would enjoy performing?" Serena asked before nuzzling her nose against Togepi's crown. She began to imagine Togepi performing on a stage with her and her other Pokemon.

Ash smiled as he looked at Serena who was deep in thought, "I think Togepi would be a great addition to your team." He replied wholeheartedly, "Any Pokemon would love to perform with you. When it gets the chance to see you perform I bet it will want to try it out in a heartbeat."

"Unless it wants to battle other Pokemon with you." Serena giggled.

"I think Togepi is too fragile for battling... besides..." Ash began in a much more quieter, serious tone, "It'll be _cute_ to see you trying to create a dance routine with it." Ash lowered his voice when he said the word cute. It wasn't a word he used very often. In fact, he's never associated it with a girl before.

Serena bit her lip and looked the other way as her face turned a deep shade of crimson. _He just called me cute..._ She thought to herself. She really wanted to just bury her face into a pillow and scream.

Noticing Serena's happiness Togepi once again jumped out of Serena's arms, "Togepi!" Serena called out in shock as the group once again stopped. The group of heroes watched as Togepi began to hop around, pointing at Ash and Serena, "What does it want?"

"Aww man..." Ash sighed before rubbing his head in confusion, "The Togepi I knew in Kanto wasn't like this."

"Pika Pika..."

"This one probably has a different nature. That's all." Clemont pointed out as he once again tried to analyze the situation, "Like how Serena's Eevee carried a timid nature."

"Well... What do you think it wants now?" Ash asked with slight frustration.

Bonnie held her hand to her mouth trying to stifle a laugh, "Maybe it wants you two to hold hands." She joked.

"Hold hands!?" Serena's eyes widened as she jumped backwards in complete surprise, "Wh-What makes you think that?" The adrenaline began coursing much faster throughout her body.

"I'm just kid-"

"Toge Toge Togeprii!" Togepi jumped as high as it could as if to signify that Bonnie's suggestion was correct.

"Wh-Why would it want us to hold hands?!" Serena's voice quivered as she tried to control her emotions.

Clemont bent over and asked Togepi if that was what it wanted. Togepi once again jumped high and continued to repeat its name.

"I think Bonnie is right. It does view you two as its parents, so it maybe wants you two to act like it." Clemont said after carefully rethinking the situation, "That shouldn't be so hard... You two are friends. That's way better than being enemies."

"Friends? They are more than friends." Bonnie teased clearly making Serena and Ash uncomfortable.

"Yes you are right Bonnie." Clemont thanked his sister before correcting himself, "You two are great friends!"

Bonnie continued to laugh because of how simpleminded her brother was when it came to love. He could pick up love between two Pokemon, but he couldn't sense it between the two people who were travelling along with him.

"What's so funny Bonnie?" He asked, completely oblivious to the situation. The two siblings continued walking as Bonnie started to tease her older brother.

Ash got ahold of Pikachu who was perched up on his shoulder. He placed Pikachu on the ground next to Togepi, "Hey buddy... Since Togepi wants Serena and I to hold hands, can you walk beside it so it's not lonely down there?"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu held its paw out in determination before walking next to Togepi as if it were its bodyguard.

"Thanks. You're the best!" He stood up straight before turning his attention to Serena who was fiddling with her blue ribbon much more furiously than he's ever seen. A smile curved upon his lips as he watched Serena shift her gaze to the ground with her right foot tracing circles along the dirt, "Nervous?" He asked, breaking Serena out of her trance.

"Wh-What?" Serena stammered with uncertainty in her voice, "I-I..." Her eyes widened as she saw Ash extend his hand out for her to grab.

"It's okay Serena... I'm nervous too." He gestured for her to grab ahold of his hand, "It's not like I'm going to bite you or anything."

"I guess..." She hesitated before grabbing his hand, "You say you're nervous, but you don't seem that way though..." She mumbled underneath her breath as they continued their walk several feet away from the siblings who were in front of them, bickering away.

Ash laughed, "I have to be calm for the both of us." He said before gently squeezing her hand. For a boy that didn't know much about love, he seemed to be a natural.

* * *

Muted behind the darkened clouds was the waning moon. Serena stood at the edge of their camp holding onto Togepi with one of her arms while using her other to point up at the night sky. Through the sparse clouds she could make out the stars that speckled the sky, "The stars are pretty aren't they?" She said before returning her gaze downwards to look at Togepi's expression.

"Togeprii!" Togepi moved about in Serena's arm in excitement.

Serena giggled as the rest of her Pokemon stood beside her. With Pancham comfortably standing on Sylveon's back, the three Pokemon turned their heads to speculate the young Togepi, "Braxien!" Braxien smiled as it reached out to pet its crown.

Watching the stars was an activity that Serena enjoyed doing with her Pokemon when they camped out for the night. She was happy to have another addition to the team who also seemed to like it.

"Serena!" Bonnie called out, "We should sleep soon! It's getting late!"

The honey blonde whipped around to see Bonnie's head peeking out of their tent. She could see she was wearing her new Spritzee pajamas that Valerie gave to her before they left Laverre City, "I'm coming!" Serena yelled out. With the lack of space they had in their tent, Serena wished her Pokemon a good night before returning them into their Pokeballs. She then ran over to the tent with Togepi in her arms.

"Is Togepi going to be sleeping with us tonight?" Bonnie asked with hope, "She could sleep next to Dedenne!"

Dedenne peeked out of the tent, "Nenene!" It tilted its head in excitement. It was happy to share its own space with Togepi for the night.

"I don't know..." Serena responded before looking over to Ash and Clemont who were busily conversing with one another. Ash caught Togepi with a Pokeball earlier to signify that Togepi was there's, but they still decided to keep it out of the ball because it belonged to both of them (seeing how it viewed both of them as its parents).

Overhearing their conversation Ash replied, "That's fine with me! Togepi can sleep with me tomorrow if it wants." He chuckled before sending a smile their way.

"Okay..." Serena smiled back before setting foot in the tent.

Shortly after, Serena was comfortably lying in her sleeping bag with Togepi and Dedenne snuggled between her and Bonnie.

"Good night!" Bonnie said in a relaxing tone signifying that she was ready to go to sleep.

"Good night!" Serena replied before reaching out to flip the switch of their portable light, "Sweet dreams Togepi..." She whispered before looking up, her eyelids slowly closing as she drifted off into dreamland.

"TOGEPRI!" Togepi shrieked from the top of its lungs. Serena's eyes opened wide as she jolted forward in surprise.

"What's happening!?" Bonnie asked in a groggy voice before reaching out to their light source, "What's wrong with Togepi?"

"I don't know..." Serena picked up Togepi and tried her best to calm it down, buts its cries were just getting louder and louder.

"ARE YOU GUYS OKAY!?" Clemont's voice could be heard as he unzipped the opening of the tent, shedding a bright light in their faces.

Ash stood behind him with Pikachu perched up on his shoulder, "I just fell asleep too..." Ash said as Clemont moved to the side for him to get a closer inspection of Togepi. He kneeled down next to Serena who was still tucked in her sleeping bag, "Is it hurt?" He asked trying to examine its body.

"I don't think so..." Serena replied as Ash took Togepi in his own arms, "Maybe it wants to sleep with you. I've been holding it most of the time, maybe it misses you."

"Or maybe it wants to sleep with the both of you." Bonnie teased with a sly grin spread across her face.

"Wh-Wha- Why would you think that!?" Serena stammered as thoughts of her sharing a tent with Ash for the night crept into her mind.

"Well... earlier on it wanted you guys to walk together and hold hands... It's the only solution!"

"I think that makes sense..." Clemont pointed to Togepi who was now asleep in Ash's arms, "It fell asleep right away with you two in the vicinity. Even during dinnertime, it wanted you two to sit together."

Bonnie giggled, "It just senses the love in the air."

"Love, what love?!" Ash asked in shock before falling backwards onto the ground. It was just occurring to him that Bonnie somehow knew his feelings for Serena.

Clemont extended his arm and hoistered Ash from the ground, "Cmon Bonnie," He called out to his sister, "I guess you'll be sleeping with me tonight."

"Okay big brother!" Bonnie said with a big smile before gathering her belongings.

* * *

Serena sat on top of her sleeping bag, feeling rather awkward about the situation she was just put in. Ash had just finished tucking his stuff at one of the edges of the tent with Pikachu snoozing away on top of his clothes. It was tired from walking beside Togepi all day.

"Ready to sleep Serena?" Ash asked as he unzipped his own sleeping bag. He tucked his legs underneath the cushiony fabric and made himself comfortable next to the honey blonde.

"Once Togepi is ready..." She simply replied as she watched Togepi walk about the perimeter.

Togepi walked to one edge of the tent before turning around to walk the other way. It continued to this ever since they decided to make the switch, "Toge Togepri..." It chanted over and over again.

"I thought it would be tired by now..." Ash rubbed his neck in confusion. If he could remember correctly, Misty's Togepi was also a handful, but it was nothing like the one that was pacing about in front of him, "Maybe switching tents gave it energy?"

"Maybe..." Serena replied, "I don't feel very tired anymore either."

"Did you want to go for a walk?" Ash suggested, "When I was younger, my mom used to walk around the neighborhood with me when I couldn't sleep."

"I don't know... Maybe Togepi will get tired any second now."

Ash raised an eyebrow as he watched Togepi continuously repeat its own name quietly, but in complete joy, "I don't think so..." He stifled a laugh to prevent his own voice from waking up Pikachu.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt. Hopefully Togepi gets tired from walking outside." Serena said as she reached for the zipper at the opening of the tent.

The two heroes quietly exited the tent with Togepi and left the electric mouse Pokemon to snooze in complete peace. Ash and Serena walked a few meters away from camp in complete silence; the only thing that could be heard were the sounds of a few wild Pokemon snoozing about in the distance. They didn't want Bonnie and Clemont to wake up, especially with all the walking they had to do the next morning to reach Lumiose City. The two continued to walk in silence with their eyes keenly set on following Togepi who was walking ahead of them.

Serena let out a small yawn as she stretched her arms above her head. The raven haired trainer turned his head to look at Serena, taking note of the exhaustion that was now hitting her body, "This Togepi must be an energetic one."

"You got that right..." Serena said through another yawn.

The two came to a stop after reaching a cliff with Togepi running around in circles near the edge. The waning moon was no longer hidden behind the bunches of clouds. Instead, it shone bright and shed its light onto the ground below casting long shadows of the forest around it.

 _WHOOOSH!_ In one swift motion Togepi was captured between three metal prongs of a claw, "TOGEPRII!" It cried out in fear.

"Togepi!" Serena yelled out as her gaze followed the claw with Togepi in it retract into a familiar sight.

"Team Rocket!?" Ash gasped after the two noticed the Meowth hot air balloon floating above them.

Jessie stuck out her tongue, "Did you miss us?" She taunted.

"I thought that you guys finally decided to leave us alone!"

"Like we would ever do that?" Jessie cackled as Togepi was placed in the familiar glass container. The trio got into their positions, ready to cite their motto.

Serena tightly balled her hands into two fists, "We don't have time for this!" She said, clenched through her teeth before reaching into her pocket for a Pokeball, "Pancham I choose you!" She threw the Pokeball up in the air, releasing Pancham from its ball.

"Pancham Pan!"

"Pancham use Dark Pulse!" Serena issued her Pokemon.

The panda like Pokemon jumped up from the ground before releasing a purple chain of links from its hands, "Pancham!"

"Inkay! Join the fray!" James instructed, releasing his own Pokemon into battle, "Counteract it with Psybeam!"

The two attacks collided with one another, creating an explosion. Serena could hear the cries of Togepi who seemed to have gotten frightened by the loud boom, "Ash..." Serena said, "We have to save Togepi!"

Ash nodded, "I'm on it..." He said before reaching into the pocket of his shorts, "Greninja, Water Shuriken, Let's go!" He commanded after releasing his water Pokemon into the scene. Ash smiled to himself, knowing that he made the right decision to grab one of his Pokemon in case something happened to Togepi.

"What's-…" Jessie squinted her eyes to see the cluster of Shurikens headed their way, "Gourgeist!" She called out and on command Gourgeist liberated itself from its own Pokeball and used Shadow Ball, creating another explosion.

"We're going to upset Togepi more if we continue like this!" Serena said.

"I'll distract them... You just focus on getting Togepi back." Ash said, giving her nod. As the soot and ash began to clear around them Ash commanded his Greninja to use Double Team. A cluster of Greninja's crowded around the Team Rocket balloon, sending the group of antagonists into a state of confusion.

"Gourgeist! Use Shadow Ball on all of them!" Jessie instructed, trying to count the amount of Greninja's around their balloon.

James did the same before he instructed his own Pokemon, "Inkay, Psybeam!" The two Pokemon busily began eliminating the shadow clones.

"Double Team again!" Ash issued, sending another cluster of shadow clones their way.

"Are you kidding me?!" Meowth scowled as it jumped out of the balloon, hopping from one clone to the other while using scratch.

"Now Greninja!" Ash began, eying his real Pokemon who was on top of the balloon, out of their view, "Use cut!"

In one quick motion, Greninja cut through the material of the balloon before causing the air to leak out. During that time, Pancham with the help of Serena jumped onto the basket, and used Arm Thrust to release Togepi from its confined space. The two fell out of the basket before being caught in Serena's arms.

"Uh oh..." Team Rocket stood their frozen, listening to the familiar sound of their balloon slowly failing on them.

"Greninja, Water Shuriken!"

"Pancham, Dark Pulse!"

The two attacks headed straight towards Team Rocket, once again sending them off into the sky, "We're blasting off again!" They yelled out in unison.

"I'm so glad you're okay!" Serena said before kissing Togepi on its forehead. She twirled around with it in joy as it cheered on in happiness, "Ash!" She called out before placing Togepi next to Pancham on the ground, "Togepi went through its first experience with Team Rocket!"

Ash laughed, "And that's a good thing?"

"Of course it is! Anyone who travels with you has a to experience a run in with Team Rocket," Serena laughed before pulling Ash into a hug. Her eyes widened before realizing what she had just done.

"I'm so sorry!" The honey blonde squeaked before unwrapping her arms around him, "I didn't mean to-"

Ash grabbed ahold of Serena, pulling her back close to him, "It's okay..." He said as he returned the embrace.

Serena smiled before once again raising her arms up to wrap them around him. She rested her head on his shoulder as they enjoyed each others company. The honey blonde then loosened her grip, and leaned backwards to plant a kiss on his cheek, "We should head back... We'll still get a good amount of sleep." She said as the two ended the hug.

"Yeah..." Ash replied with slight disappointment.

Serena took her Pokeball from her pocket, intending on returning Pancham. Before she could aim it at Pancham, Ash grabbed ahold of her wrist and whipped her around to face him once more, "Ash what are you-"

The raven haired trainer surprised the young performer as he kissed her on the lips. Serena's eyes once again widened as she felt her body tense up. She dropped the Pokeball to the ground before closing her own eyes as her muscles slowly relaxed as she kissed him back.

"I'm sorry..." Ash shyly apologized after ending the kiss.

"Togeprii! Togeprii!" Togepi jumped on the spot beside them.

"I think Togepi is ready to sleep now!" Ash awkwardly chuckled before picking up Togepi. He began walking ahead of Serena with Greninja walking along beside him.

Serena smiled as she watched the boy stumble upon the dirt. She giggled before taking the Pokeball from Pancham who was kind enough to pick it up for her.

"Pancham, Pan!" Pancham smirked before pressing the button on the center, sending it back to its home.

She placed her Pokeball in her pocket before looking up to see Ash's figure starting to get smaller in the distance. _And he's all mine..._ She thought to herself before scurrying forward to catch up with the boy.

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Daniel's Return:** Back in Lumiose, the heroes reunite with Shauna, Tierno, Trevor, and Miette and decide to use their buffet coupons they won from the performer's event back in Laverre City. They come across Daniel who works at the buffet, but aren't aware that the buffet is more than just a place to eat. Modelled after the Renaissance, Serena is chosen to be queen and is told to kiss the valiant knight who wins most of the events that are planned for the evening.


	12. Daniel's Return

**A/N:** Hey guys! Sorry for the wait. I usually try to upload Sundays, or if I finish a chapter early. I was really busy last week so couldn't work on it much. This chapter might be a bit boring just because Shauna, and the others come back, making it eight and then Daniel nine, so this is more of an introduction I suppose and contains few amourshipping moments. Sorry about that! Hope you still enjoy it though. The next chapter will be much more... suspenseful? :)

 **TO: Guest:** Togepi does stay. I have more plans for it later on, but I think it will be seen much more in a sequel I am thinking of writing. I'm thinking of having it perform with Serena just cause I don't see being a part of Ash's battling team. haha

 **TO: MPM:** Yes, I know I've said there was going to be a jealous Serena before. I do have plans for it, but its near the end thats why it hasn't happened yet. I suppose that I could have spaced it out better, but its a little too late now. haha Still, please be patient. It will come!

 **TO: WolfGirl:** Yes I do accept requests, but because I am thinking of a sequel, I will be accepting requests for the next story. :) So you will definitely see your request... maybe a few months from now. heh heh...

Anyways, Thanks to everyone who reviewed. We've reached 100! Woohoo! **(Thanks to MANbearPIG01, MoonfallExpress, ultimateCCC, PunishedEagle88, espeon44, Pokemon fan, Tenzalucard123, warzonecall, doc boy, FantasyLover88, BreeZaps, Guest, JayFan67, bladgras, Lolly1o1)**

* * *

 **Summary:** Back in Lumiose, the heroes reunite with Shauna, Tierno, Trevor, and Miette and decide to use their buffet coupons they won from the performer's event back in Laverre City. They come across Daniel who works at the buffet, but aren't aware that the buffet is more than just a place to eat. Modelled after the Renaissance, Serena is chosen to be queen and is told to kiss the valiant knight who wins most of the events that are planned for the evening.

* * *

 **EP 12: Daniel's Return**

A burst of flames traveled upwards before striking a cluster of pines that were not too far from the passing companions. The group came to a stop just a few feet away from the Pokemon Center to witness the canopy of trees omit a wave of dark smoke that began to ascend higher into the atmosphere. The flames began to spread, almost creating a large fire, but was quickly put out by what looked to be many squirts of water. The tops of the trees were now void of any color, and burnt to the crisp.

Serena wriggled her nose as the scent of burning wood wafted near her, "What's going on?" She asked, waving her free hand in front of her face to dissipate the smell. Her other hand had her fingers interlocked with the raven haired trainer. Ever since they caught Togepi just a few days ago, the two lovebirds have been holding hands during their travels to prevent Togepi from throwing a fit.

"I think its coming from the battlefield," Ash replied. Bobbing his head, Ash tried to get a glimpse of the action behind the cluster of trees, "Let's go check it out!" He said in excitement before letting go of Serena's hand to speculate the battle.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu who stood beside Togepi began scurrying in the direction of its trainer.

Shrugging her shoulders, the honey blonde scooped Togepi from the ground before turning her attention to the Lumiose siblings, "I guess we're watching a battle."

"Well of course we are," Bonnie giggled before walking ahead.

Serena and Clemont followed behind Bonnie before a few familiar voices began to fill their ears.

"Good shot, but not good enough! Ivysaur, Razor Leaf!"

"Charmeleon, Flamethrower!"

As Serena continued walking past the bunch of trees, the voices became much more recognizable. She ducked beneath a few branches before finally reaching Ash and Pikachu whose eyes were glued to the battle happening before them, "What's hap-" Serena left her thought unfinished as she noticed Tierno and Trevor standing on one side of the battlefield with Shauna and Miette standing on the opposite end.

Serena's eyes glazed upon Charmeleon who was in the middle of releasing a a fiery burst of flames from its mouth. With quick thinking, Miette and Shauna issued their own Pokemon to dodge the fire headed their way. Slurpuff swiftly dodged the attack, but Ivysaur at its already weakened state had been scorched by the flame slightly brushing up against its hind leg. The grass Pokemon fell on its side with its health almost fully depleted.

"Ivysaur!" Shauna called out with concern, "Are you okay!? Can you keep battling?"

The weakened Ivysaur breathed heavily as it struggled to pull itself up from the ground, "I-Ivysaur!" It grunted in determination, glaring at its opponents who stood ahead of it.

A smirk curved upon Tierno's face, "You are definitely improving Shauna, but it's still not good enough." The plump trainer began dancing on the spot with his Blastoise moving along with him in complete sync, "Alright Blastoise, let's finish this off! Hydro Pump!"

"Blastoise!" With a determined look, the tortoise Pokemon buried its feet into the ground to keep its balance. In a flash of a second, a powerful pressure of water ruptured from the cannons protruding from the top of its shell, its eyes set on hitting the grass Pokemon who just needed one more hit to faint.

Miette darted her eyes from Blastoise to Ivysaur the second before Blastoise unleashed its attack, "Slurpuff, Use Cotton Spore!" She pointed ahead at the space between their Pokemon.

In a flash of a second Slurpuff released its cottony spores, creating a large cloud like obstacle ahead of the tortoise Pokemon. Blastoise's high pressure attack charged straight at the cottony spores, filling it up with water. The spores increased in volume before exploding into a tiny million water filled molecules that immediately drenched everyone in the area.

"Alright!" Tierno called out with a beaming smile as Blastoise's attack continued on strongly, aiming for the Ivysaur in front of it.

"No!" Miette yelled out in dismay as the strong water attack hit both Ivysaur and Slurpuff, causing them to faint and lose the battle.

"We are the best!" Tierno began with his fancy footwork as he danced over to Blastoise and gave it a high five, "It's been proven! Boys are the best!" He stuck his tongue out at Shauna and Miette who were comforting their own Pokemon before returning them to their Pokeballs.

"Oh please, that doesn't prove anything!" Shauna spat out, her arms crossed, "It was just one battle and Trevor barely did anything!"

"He weakened your Pokemon!"

"Hey you guys!" Ash called out, running over to the four, with Tierno and Shauna bickering at the center of the battlefield, "That was a great battle!"

Serena began wringing the drenched spots on her clothing as she could hear Tierno apologizing for not seeing them anytime earlier. Bonnie and Clemont followed behind Ash and immediately took interest in any new Pokemon that Trevor's taken a picture of.

The honey blonde looked down at Togepi who was happily walking around in circles, enjoying the after effects of the attack that imitated a giant sprinker. She thought Togepi would cry from all the impact, but instead it was enjoying it by admiring the tiny water filled spores that were lying about the area. Serena averted her attention back to her clothes, a frown forming upon her face as she stared at the cotton that seemed to be tighty cling onto her outfit.

"Serena!" Shauna called out before running to her friend, embracing her in a hug, "It's been awhile, hasn't it?!" She asked, as Miette stood behind her.

Serena smiled, "It has hasn't it?" She averted her attention to Miette and gave her a nod, "Are you guys traveling together now? What's going on?"

"We are! After the Performer's Event, Miette didn't know where to go, and I asked her if she wanted to travel with me."

"Oh that's great!"

"She's a great traveling companion. If you joined us, we would be the Perfect Performer's Squad." Shauna giggled before finally noticing how drenched and ruined her clothes were, "We would be better than all those boys over there!" Shauna shot a glare at Tierno and Trevor.

Miette laughed after noticing the discombobulated look on Serena's face, "Yeah... Shauna wanted to call us the P.P Squad." She shook her head before continuing, "Anywho, Tierno said boys are better than girls, and it made Shauna angry." Miette sighed, "Her and Tierno have been dragging Trevor and I into a series of competitions to prove what gender is better."

"And that doesn't bother you?," asked Serena.

A smug look formed about Miette's face. "Of course not. I'm better than most, if not, all," She replied with a confident tone. She began blotting the water and cotton away with the help of a handkerchief, despite it making a very miniscule difference.

"Right, well now that you're here, we can prove to those boys that girls are better than them!" Shauna said with complete determination, holding a fist up into the air.

"Toge Togepri!" Togepi yelled out in complete support as it hopped next to the brunette Performer.

Breaking away from her thoughts of victory, Shauna looked downwards, noticing the egg like Pokemon standing beside her. She kneeled down to examine Togepi, "Aww..." Shauna said, her heart melting by Togepi's cuteness, "Aren't you just the cutest thing?" She picked up Togepi with her hands and held it above her.

"A Togepi?" Miette questioned before leaning in close to Shauna to get a better look, "Is it yours Serena? Did you catch another Pokemon?"

"Well..." Serena began with a nervous tone. She once again lifted her hand to fiddle with the blue ribbon on her dress. What would they say when she tells them that she's been raising Togepi with Ash?

Interrupting her thoughts, the raven haired trainer strolled by and took Togepi from Shauna's grasp, "It's mine and Serena's Pokemon," he said.

The two Performers looked to one another, blinking in confusion.

"What do you mean?" Shauna finally asked.

"Well, you see... Serena and I found it hatching on our way here to Lumiose City. It saw both of us at the same time, and views us as its parents." Ash finally replied, scratching his cheek with his index finger.

"So you guys are its parents?" Miette asked, a smirk forming upon her face.

"I guess you can say that."

"Oh that's so cool!" Tierno said, walking over to Togepi to inspect it. The plump trainer bent down, smiling at the Pokemon that was in Ash's arms, "Hi Togepi, I'm Tierno and this is my partner Blastoise!" He pointed to his tortoise Pokemon who stood beside him.

"Blastoise!"

Happy to be meeting new people, Togepi replied in a delighted tone. The others then followed in Tierno's footsteps and introduced themselves, making Togepi much more pleased.

"So..." Miette began, a mischievous look on her face, "As parents, how do you two take care of it?"

Bonnie walked over to the blue haired Performer, "When we travel, Togepi wants Ash and Serena to hold hands or else it will throw a fit," she said, clearly enjoying the fact that she could tell both her and Shauna about the progress that's been going on between the two lovebirds, "It even wants them to sleep in the same tent."

"Really now...?" Miette grinned before looking Serena in the eye.

The honey blonde could feel her cheeks burn with embarrassment as the three sets of female eyes buried deep into her soul. Her fingers fiddled with the blue ribbon much more ferociously. Considering how things have been going for her in the last little while, fiddling with her ribbon seemed to be something that she's been doing a billion times a day. She had no clue as to how it was still hanging onto her dress in mint condition.

Noticing Serena wrap her fingers around the loops of her ribbon Ash asked, "Are you okay Serena?"

"Oh she's fine." Miette said, stifling a giggle, "I'm sure she's just tired of wearing wet clothes. I certainly am." She grabbed ahold of Serena's wrist and began dragging her to the Pokemon Center.

"Are you sure Serena?" Ash called out with concern. He knew that whenever Serena twiddled with her ribbon, it had to do something with him.

"Oh yeah, she's fine!" Miette called out with Shauna and Bonnie hurrying along behind her. They were all trying their best to contain their laughter.

Ash blinked in confusion as he watched the three girls take Serena away into the confined walls of the Pokemon Center. He furrowed his brow in worry, wondering what they wanted to do with Serena.

"Girls right?" Tierno said interrupting Ash from his thoughts, "Always so secretive."

"I suppose that's just the nature of girls," Said Clemont.

"Yeah, but no one likes secrets. That's why boys are better. We're always so straightforward!"

Ash shook his head. At least Serena was with a group of close female friends instead of some boy, "Yeah... Well Miette's right, we should change our clothes. We don't want to get sick."

* * *

The fairy type assistant bustled about the area, completing the certain tasks at hand to make Nurse Joy's job much easier. The calls of the hardworking Wigglytuff could be heard as it ushered around trainers with their injured Pokemon to the next available room for Nurse Joy to give a proper examination.

Lounging about the lobby were the exhausted bunch of boys, in newly dried outfits, waiting for their own Pokemon to replenish their health with the help of Nurse Joy. The Pokemon photographer sat at a table pressing buttons on his digital camera trying to organize all his photos into different categories. Across from him was Clemont who was, of course tinkering with another one of his failed gadgets in hopes of finally getting it right. Tierno was lazily slouching on one of the cushiony sofas, staring up at the ceiling in boredom while quietly mumbling a tune to himself. Sitting on the edge of the couch next to Tierno was the raven haired trainer who was intently staring at the door a few meters away from him. He closed his eyes, trying to block all the noise around him in hopes that maybe he would hear Shauna or any of the other girl's voices from behind the door.

After a minute of concentrating, Ash fell backwards into his seat in frustration, joining Tierno with his ceiling staring. His mind began to aimlessly wander about what they wanted with Serena. He didn't even know why it was such a big deal. She was with her closest friends, so he had nothing to worry about. He supposed maybe it was because he knew what girls talked about ever since he had to take on his alias of Ashley again, and he was curious as to what they were saying about him, if they were even talking about him.

"I think I'm getting hungry..." Tierno said in a lazy voice, "Or maybe I'm just bored."

"I can always go for some food." Ash said, sitting up. He turned his attention to Tierno who looked incredibly relaxed.

Trevor began rummaging through his knapsack, pulling out a few pouches of supplies before finally being able to reach his wallet, "Why don't we use those buffet tickets we got from the Performer's event?" He suggested before examining the small rectangular ticket that read 'Admit One to Lumiose Castle Restaurant, any day starting 7PM'. Around the border of the ticket were tiny pictures of nicely plated food. At the center were two knights clashing swords with a female figure of royalty watching behind them.

"We're all here in Lumiose, so we should all go together before we go our separate ways." Trevor said as the rest of the boys began rummaging through their own belongings in search of their own ticket.

"What are you guys doing?" Miette asked, being the first one to finally exit the room with the rest following behind her.

The honey blonde took a seat next to Ash as Trevor began to tell them his idea of going to the Lumiose Castle Restaurant.

"I think it's a great idea." Ash said, pulling his ticket out from his own wallet. He was surprised that he didn't somehow manage to lose it.

"Me too!" Bonnie said cheerfully.

"We should be heading over there soon then." The inventor began cleaning up his own mess, "It's almost six. We should leave after our Pokemon are done with their check up."

"That's a great idea!" Shauna said in a perky tone, "I'm starting to get hungry too."

* * *

"Wow..." Serena marvelled at the line of people who were waiting to get accepted into the restaurant, "I didn't know that this place was so popular."

"I think it's a new restaurant," replied Clemont who couldn't recognize the structure that was in front of him.

The design of the building mimicked a castle with two tall, round towers on either side. Attached to the center of the stony structure was a wooden sign with the words 'Lumiose Castle Restaurant', with each letter illuminating a dim bright light. Below was the entrance, with two opened glass doors and a concierge standing behind a podium. Standing atop of one of the round towers were two men who were dressed like jesters, announcing the specials for the evening. On the other tower were two other men who were dressed like knights, arguing about who was going to become the Queen's protector.

"Do you think it's one of those restaurants where you eat and get to watch a play?" Bonnie asked, inquisitive about the conversation that was happening between the two knights.

"That would be entertaining." Serena said as they all took their place in line.

The line slowly began to move with the eight friends taking a few steps forward every few minutes.

"Serena?" A male voice called out, "Is that you?"

The honey blonde whipped around to see an old friend standing in front of her. With his messy dark hair, and auburn eyes, a faint smile formed on Serena's face. It was Daniel, the boy who tricked her and her friends for his own selfish reason of getting her to go on a date with him.

"Daniel? What are you doing here?" She asked before noticing his attire. He was dressed in a white puffy shirt with a laced up collar, and black harem pants that were tucked into his black leather boots. Slung around his shoulders were two cardboard boxes, one labelled 'Knights' and the other labelled 'Queen'.

"I work here." He smiled before slightly cocking his head to greet the other familiar faces that stood behind Serena, closest to the stony exterior, "I see you guys are here with more friends." He said, feeling rather uncomfortable as Miette and Shauna stared at him with unwavering eyes.

"Oh yeah... These are our other friends, Miette..." The honey blonde began gesturing her arms to each person as she began with the introductions, "Shauna, Tierno, and Trevor."

"Oh cool. Nice to meet you all." He gave them a bright smile, causing Miette and Shauna's cheeks to burn a bright shade of crimson.

Tierno leaned over, inspecting the boxes that were dangling around Daniel's chest, "So what are these boxes for?" He asked, pushing down on a ballot that was sticking out of the slit.

Daniel reached into the leather utility belt hanging around his waist, pulling out a notepad of paper and a few tiny pencils, "These are apart of the event that goes on every dinner, Thursday night. You guys are lucky to pick this day out of any other day to enjoy the Lumiose Castle experience."

"What do you mean?," asked Trevor.

"Every night we usually offer a dinner and play, but on Thursdays we get the guests to be the entertainers," He pointed to the boxes, "I stand out here on Thursdays and ask males if they want to be a Knight, and females if they want to be a Queen. As dinner begins, our manager Brady picks out one name from the 'Queen' box and four names from the 'Knights' box. The knights then get to go under a series of tests to see who's worthy of being the Queen's protector."

"That sounds like so much fun!" Serena said in excitement.

"Did you guys want to sign up?"

Reaching for a ballot Ash said, "You bet I do!"

"Me too!" Tierno agreed, reaching for his own ballot.

"So can girls sign up to be a knight too?," asked Shauna with a hopeful look in her eyes.

"No... sorry." Daniel shrugged his shoulders as everyone began stuffing their own ballot into the rightful box, "That would be cool though."

The plump trainer leaned over Shauna's shoulder, "It's because boys are much stronger than girls. You wouldn't be able to handle the obstacles. You should just stick with sitting on a pretty throne."

"Oh shut it Tierno." Shauna gritted through her teeth, before mustering the courage to kick him in the shin.

"Oww!" Tierno grunted in pain as he started hopping on one leg, "That hurt Shauna!"

"Well I guess girls are strong enough to make a boy cry!" She stuck her tongue out at him before striding ahead towards the concierge, "Cmon P.P Squad! … and Bonnie!"

Miette shook her head, trying to mask her expression of embarrassment, "I can't believe she just used that term." She followed behind Shauna and handed her ticket to the man behind the podium.

"Well... at least she didn't say it too loud." Serena replied, trying to make the situation much more bearable.

Bonnie skipped along behind them, "I want to be a part of the P.P Squad!"

"Don't encourage her!" Miette spat out, pulling a handkerchief from her pocket to hide her shame.

* * *

Entering the restaurant, the group of friends were being ushered through a long hall that was brightly lit by a dozen amount of light sources that hung up on the walls. The lights took on the appearance of torches and hanging between all of the lights were portraits of knights and royalty.

"So pretty!" Bonnie said in awe as they reached the arched doorway that lead them to the dining hall.

"Hey Ash!" Daniel whispered, pulling Ash away from the rest of the group.

"What is it?" The raven haired trainer asked with blinking eyes.

"Pika Pika?"

A lopsided grin formed about the employee's face, "So you and Serena are an item now?"

Taken aback from his question, Ash stumbled backwards, "Huh...? Wh-Wh-What makes you think that?" He stammered, darting his eyes around the area to avoid making any kind of eye contact.

Daniel chuckled. "Serena always liked you, and I knew that you liked her too. Of course, you didn't know it back then."

Ash sighed, "Yeah, I was pretty dense..." He slouched, staring at the ground between his feet, "How do you know that there's something going on between me and Serena?" He asked, perking back up, curious to hear Daniel's answer. "I mean... I don't think Clemont even knows, and he's with us all the time."

"Well, I am a few years older than you guys," Daniel laughed, "The way you look at her changed."

"The way I look at her?"

"Yeah... It's different." He began stroking his chin, "Anyways, I saw it coming and I've been rooting for you two the whole time." Daniel smiled at the raven haired trainer.

"You have?"

"Yeah, but just so you know Ash, there's going to be a lot of things the both of you are going to have to go through," Daniel said in a serious tone before once again resuming a smile, "It'd be funny if Serena becomes the queen tonight though... We usually get the queen to kiss the winner of the competition."

"What!?" Ash's jaw dropped in shock.

"Yeah," Daniel joked, stifling a laugh, "If I were you I wouldn't have had Serena put her name into the box. What would you do if she had to kiss someone else?" Unable to control himself, Daniel burst into laughter. After a few seconds, he noticed the piercing glares coming from Ash, and recomposed himself, "Relax... What are the chances of Serena being the queen?"

* * *

"Ash!" Serena called out, flailing her arms over her head to get Ash's attention.

Before giving Serena his undivided attention, Ash looked about the restaurant in complete awe. The rectangular tables were all on different platforms that got lower and lower as it neared the enormous open space that Ash presumed was used for the plays. On the highest platform away from all the chairs and tables was the buffet area where Ash could already see Tierno overflowing his plate with appetizers.

"Isn't this place amazing!?" Serena said out loud as Ash took his seat beside her, "I already got you and Pikachu some food, " She continued before placing two plates in front of him.

"Thanks Serena," He smiled to himself, happy to know that he had her in his life.

"No problem, Ash." She gave him a soft smile.

"Hey guys, I'm going to use the washroom," Miette said after placing her own plate of food on the table, "Does anyone else need to go?"

"You always need to use the washroom," Shauna stated, taking a swig of juice.

"I just want to wash my hands..." Miette retorted, arms crossed. "I'll just go on my own then."

"Don't get lost!"

After several minutes of making themselves comfortable, and filling their table with the maximum capacity of plates, the group started to stuff their faces with the delicious food. The other customers around them were already enjoying their meals, and the buffet area was now completely void of any people.

Suddenly, the lights around the room dimmed as a bright spotlight shone down on a man who stood at the center of the open space. The upbeat tunes from the renaissance period faded into complete silence as everyone about the room discontinued with their conversations.

"Good evening everyone!" The man at the center of the stage said before introducing himself as Brady. "As you all know, it is Thursday, and that means it's the day where a few lucky people in the crowd get to be the entertainers!" He ended in an enthusiastic tone.

Everyone in the room cheered, and gave a round of applause. Some were impatient and yelled out that they already wanted to hear the competitors for the night. The group of friends quietly clapped, eager to be apart of the Lumiose Castle experience.

"This is so exciting!" Serena whispered to Ash as Daniel entered the stage.

"As usual," Brady continued on while Daniel unlatched the boxes from the strap that was hanging around his shoulders. There were two large glass bowls sitting atop two separate stools, and Daniel began pouring the ballots into the bowls respectably.

"We will start off with picking the four lucky knights who will compete to be the Queen's protector." Brady said as Daniel exited the stage. The manager took a few steps forward to the stool with the male names. The crowd grew with anticipation as he dipped his finger into the pool of paper, giving it a good mix. He pulled out a piece of parchment and read, "Tierno!"

The crowd filled with cheers and groans.

"Yes!" Tierno stood up from his seat, his mouth stuffed to the brim with potatoes, "I'm definitely going to be the Queen's protector!" He attempted to say through his starch filled mouth.

The spotlight shone above Tierno as Brady asked him to join him down on the stage. Taking a few scones, Tierno walked down the set of stairs.

"Our next competitor..." Brady once again reached out for another slip of paper, "Clemont!"

"Gahh!" Clemont groaned with anxiety. The spotlight began to swerve across the crowd, trying to find the person who had the name Clemont.

The younger of the siblings stood up from her seat, tugging on her brother's shoulder, "Big brother!" She called out, "What are you doing!?"

"I didn't think my name would be chosen!" He replied in a fearful tone. He raised his arms to his head, trying to mask his face away from the wandering light.

"Cmon Clemont! Don't be shy!" Brady said through the mic. Everyone in the crowd started turning their heads, aimlessly looking for the mysterious boy named Clemont.

"He's over here!" Bonnie yelled out, pointing over to her brother who was now, somehow taking on the cradle position in his seat.

"Bonnie!" He called out exasperated as the light shone above him.

"Oh don't be a big baby!" She spat out, "If you didn't want to be a knight then you shouldn't have put your name in the box!"

"You would have pushed me to do it!"

"Yeah..." Bonnie said with realization, "I would have, but if you don't go down there, I will ask every girl in here to be your wife!"

"No! I'll do it!" Clemont stood up from his seat, running down the staircase.

The room filled with laughter as Brady once again dipped his hand into the bowl of paper, "Ash!"

"Wow, all of our friends are getting picked." Shauna pointed out as Ash stood up from his seat.

"Maybe I get to have a battle against Tierno!" Ash said, holding his fist out in excitement.

The honey blonde clasped her hands together before looking up to give him a smile, "Good luck Ash!"

"Thanks Serena," He smiled back before running down the set of stairs, with of course, his buddy perched up on his shoulder.

"Alright folks, that's three knights! Time to pick out the last competitor!" For the last time, he reached into the bowl, this time digging a little deeper. For a few seconds, he moved his hand around, giving it another mix, "Okay..." He started before unfolding the ballot, "A rather interesting name..." Brady mumbled, "Will King please come on down?"

Everyone looked around the room, wandering who this King person was. Hushed tones and the boards creaking beneath their seats filled the room, followed by the sound of clunking metal.

"I am King." A distorted voice uttered. It sounded somewhat unnatural, as if the person's voice was being manipulated by a voice changer. It sounded a tad bit robotic, with a male English accent.

All heads turned, looking upwards at the mysterious figure who set foot at the top of the stairs. The mysterious boy wore armor with a surcoat on top. Not a single piece of skin was exposed, as they wore gloves and a knight's helm.

"Is this normal? Shauna whispered over to Serena.

"I don't know..." Serena replied, "Maybe they have a mysterious knight all the time.

"I guess..." Shauna sighed, "Too bad Miette is missing all of this. I bet she went to that gift shop."

King descended down the stairs, stunning most individuals, including Brady.

"Well, I suppose it's great to see someone dressed for the part. You surely are a fan of the restaurant." Brady said.

"Indeed." King replied, taking his spot next to Ash on the stage.

"Alright everyone! That concludes our competitors tonight! Now we shall announce the Queen for the evening. The Queen who will kiss one of these lucky competitors tonight!" Brady continued, as the room once again filled with anticipation.

He walked over to the separate stool, and reached into the bowl, "The lucky Queen for tonight is..." He unfolded the piece of parchment, "Serena!"

Ash's eyes widened as he watched the honey blonde stand up from her own seat. The room filled with a round of applause as Serena descended the stairs. _What are the chances of Serena being the queen?_ Daniel's voice began to fill the raven haired trainers mind.

Ash scanned the faces of the crowd before finally finding Daniel standing beside the buffet with an apologetic look on his face. He could make out the words 'I'm sorry' coming out from Daniel's lips before he disappeared behind a statue. Ash took a deep breath before eying his opponents. If he really needed to, he could ask Tierno and Clemont to not accept the kiss. As for King, he knew nothing about him. He didn't even know what he looked like beneath all that armor. The Pallet Town trainer clenched his fist. _I can do this._ He thought to himself. _I can beat all of them and win Serena's kiss!_

* * *

After a short break, the five lucky entertainers for the night got into their costumes, ready to play their roles. Tierno was stuffing his face with the food that was placed on a table for the entertainers to eat. The inventor was sitting in a chair, scared for his life, and the mysterious boy King, stood in place, unmoving, as if he was a statue himself.

Ash attempted to scratch his leg, but failed to do so because of the layer of metal that was inhibiting him, "I think I prefer tuxedos now..." He groaned, scratching at the metal.

"Pika Pika..." Pikachu stood beside its trainer with a shield draped around its back.

"What do you think?" Serena exited the female changing room, wearing an ornate gown.

"You look great Serena..." Ash mumbled underneath his breath, his cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink.

"You do too Ash..." She returned the compliment, reaching for the blue ribbon that wasn't there.

Noticing her action, Ash chuckled, "Was it something I said?"

"What do you mea-" The honey blonde stopped after noticing her fingers twiddle with the intricate ruffles sewed to the collar of her dress, "Oh..." She blushed, "I just... I hope you win Ash." She pursed her lips before walking away in embarrassment.

* * *

"Alright everyone!" Brady announced, "Let us commence with the first competition!"

Ash and the rest of the competitors all stood on separate platforms while a bunch of workers wheeled out a giant wheel that contained all the possible games that they could be participating in for the evening.

Brady stood beside the wheel, handing his microphone to one of the workers. He reached for one of the upper pegs, giving the wheel a hard spin.

Ash stared at the wheel, hoping that it would land on something that he was good at. The wheel continued turning and turning, until it slowed down coming to a complete stop, "Tonight's first event will be... Archery!"

The raven haired trainer clenched his fists before looking up at Serena who was sitting on a throne at the most fanciest table. He watched as she tried to sit comfortably in her seat with Pikachu, Togepi, and Daniel keeping her company. _I'm going to win this competition, and I'm going to win that kiss!_ He thought with complete determination. Now that he had her, he wasn't going to let any other boy near her.

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Let The Game's Begin!:** The games begin, and Ash is set on coming first place in all of the challenges. Although, things don't go according to plan since the mysterious competitor King is an ace in everything, and is capturing all the female hearts of the crowd. Through the mess and stress, the conclusion of the valiant knight will be revealed!

* * *

 **A/N:** This is the first chapter that is divided into two. What do you guys thinks about King?! haha. :) I hope you guys are looking forward to the conclusion.


	13. Let The Games Begin

**A/N:** Hi guys! Sorry I'm late again! Been very busy lately. Also this chapter is currently the longest chapter being around 8000 words. I am truly sorry for the mistakes in the chapter. I didn't have much time to edit it, but I still hope you guys enjoy the premise of it. With it already being long, I didn't really get to describe things the way I really wanted. I supposed I could have broke it into two separate chapters, but I really just wanted to move onto the next new adventure. :( Yeah, I'm not good with keeping up with a story thats why I do a bunch of these small ones. We all gotta start somewhere right? :) Please don't hate me too much if something doesnt make too much sense. I'm not the best of putting my thoughts into words.

Thanks to all for guessing who King is. :) I really do need to work on surprising plot twists. haha :D

And once again thank you for all the reviews: **michmech, Guest, espeon44, FantasyLover88, ultimateCCC, MANbearPIG01, JayFan67, Tenzalucard123, PikaTrainer1, PunishedEagle88, SateSereLover, Pokemon fan, The Sassy Sylveon, Guest, doc boy, Golden Tiger, WolfGirl, xNaruHina, Lolly1o1.**

I still hope you guys enjoy the chapter despite the lack of amourshipping moments.

* * *

 **Summary:** The games begin, and Ash is set on coming first place in all of the challenges. Although, things don't go according to plan since the mysterious competitor King is an ace in everything, and is capturing all the female hearts of the crowd. Through the mess and stress, the conclusion of the valiant knight will be revealed!

* * *

 **EP 13: Let The Game's Begin!**

 _Once again in Lumiose City, our group of heroes have encountered Tierno, Shauna, Miette, and Trevor! After a hearty reunion, the friends have decided to redeem the buffet tickets they have won during the Performer's event back in Laverre City. On their way to the Lumiose Castle Restaurant, our heroes bumped into another friend – Daniel. Daniel informed them about the 'Audience Entertains' special. Instead of the usual play, a few males are chosen from the crowd to compete to become the Queen's protector - the Queen also being someone from the audience. Upon hearing this, everyone's interests have been tweaked, causing them to enter their names for the draw. As they began to eat, Ash, Tierno, Clemont and a mysterious boy named King have been chosen to be the competitors for the evening. Serena was then chosen to be Queen, and is told that she must kiss the winner! Upon hearing this, Ash is determined to make sure that Serena kisses no one but him, and sets his mind to win the first event, archery._

Amidst the hushed tones, the sounds of cutlery clanking against dishes echoed throughout the dining room. The audience stared at the stage ahead of them with their eyes wide open, awaiting the raven haired trainer to release his final arrow from his bow.

The first competition has begun with Tierno and Clemont being the first to accumulate their points. With the red circle in the center being worth ten points, and each outer ring after that being one less point than the former, each contestant had three shots at the target, and were given the chance to accumulate the highest number of points – thirty. Tierno being the first to take on the challenge accumulated a total of twenty points, and Clemont totaled a number of seventeen.

Having beginners luck on his first try, Ash received nine points. The audience cheered with excitement and could not wait to witness him shoot another arrow on his second go. Sadly, the pressure was too much for Ash and he ended up with only six points. His only hope was to score at least six points on his third try in order to get ahead of his buddy Tierno.

Ash took a deep breath, staring at the target in front of him. He closed his eyes, trying to calm his nerves. His palms were sweaty, making his grip on the bow rather uncomfortable. His hands slightly trembled as he felt his heart pump blood throughout his entire body. _I can do this._ He thought to himself as he envisioned Serena's smile in his mind. His eyes fluttered open as he held his breath. Maintaining his posture, Ash relaxed his fingers containing the bowstring, and released his final arrow in the process.

He slowly moved his bow to the side as he, along with the crowd, watched the arrow fly towards the wooden target. In a quick second the pointed tip pierced through the wood. Ash took a step forward, focusing his eyes on where the arrow has landed. The audience behind him did the same, standing from their own seats, leaning forwards and squinting their eyes to make out the ring that had the arrow attached to it.

"Eight points Ash," said Brady who was confirming the score with his own eyes, "A great comeback! That puts you at twenty three points!"

The crowd cheered and clapped. Through all that noise, Ash could hear Bonnie and Shauna shouting out his name from the top of their lungs. He sighed in relief, no longer maintaining a rigid stance. He wiped the sweat dripping from his forehead as his rapidly beating heart began to slow down to a much more calming pace.

"Wow Ash!" Tierno complimented as Ash returned to his seat at the competitor's dining table. "That was pretty good."

"Yeah," agreed Clemont. "That currently puts you in the lead."

Ash rubbed his nape in embarrassment. "You guys aren't too far behind," he said. "Especially you Tierno. You would have gotten more points on your last shot if you didn't lose your grip."

"Yeah," Tierno sighed. "It's alright. I think we all did pretty good."

The trio agreed before resuming the meals that they barely touched. Ash stuffed a spoonful of mashed potatoes into his mouth as he watched the workers remove his target to make room for a new one. He glanced over at King who was inspecting the bow and arrows that were given to him. The raven haired boy gulped, hoping that King wasn't going to be able to beat his total of twenty three points.

Taking a glance over at the Queen's table, Ash propped himself up in his seat. He slightly turned his head, taking a glimpse at the honey blonde that was a few feet away, feeding Togepi a Pecha Berry. He rested his head upon his hand with his elbow against the table for support. A smile crept upon his face as he continued to watch Serena cut up a few more Berries for both Togepi and Pikachu to eat. He watched as Serena frantically began searching for a clean napkin through the heaps of dishes laid about the table. As Serena turned her head, the boy from Pallet Town was caught staring right at her.

Embarrassed, Ash immediately looked away as he slid his arm off the table to sit up straight. He began smoothing out the non existing wrinkles on his surcoat while nervously tapping his foot against the flooring to provide himself some kind of relief. He looked over at his goblet and took a swig before gathering the courage to once again sneak a glance at the honey blonde. His heart began to race as he looked at Serena who held the napkin to her face, stifling a giggle. Nervous, he pulled his hand back and rubbed his nape.

Serena placed the clean napkin on the table, waving her hand to garner his attention. "You did great Ash," she said before giving him a radiant smile.

"Thanks Serena," he shyly replied.

"Alright everyone," said Brady. "Let us resume our first challenge with our last competitor, King!"

The crowd once again silenced themselves as King pulled his bow up to his helm, his fingers rubbing against the metal exterior. Without taking a second to aim, King launched his first arrow at the target. Brady, who stood next to the competitor's table, took a step forward, heading in the direction of the target to inspect the first shot.

"Please sir," King began. "Not quite done."

Brady remained still, confusion taking over his face.

King grabbed the second arrow from the quiver that was leaning on the stool next to him. In a few swift motions, the mysterious competitor shot his second arrow before once again reaching to the quiver for the last one. With the same motions, King released his last arrow, and everyone watched as it pierced through the target.

"Unbelievable!" Brady said in shock, squinting his eyes to see the arrows fairly close to the center of the target. He resumed walking to the center of the stage, ready to get a better inspection.

"Huh!?" Ash stood up from his seat, almost knocking over his goblet of juice.

Tierno and Clemont did the same as they leaned over the table, still trying to process the fact that King was able to shoot all three arrows in a quick manner without needing a second to reaffirm his stance or get a good aim.

"This is amazing!" Brady announced, "King has totalled a score of thirty points!"

"WHAT!?" The three competitors eyes widened as they looked up at the giant TV that was filming the events. The man with the camera walked over to Brady, and focused on the target. The three arrows were located at the very center of the bullseye without a single arrow touching the other.

"Is that even possible?" uttered Clemont who was most likely trying to see if the arrows were actually, completely centered.

"Yeah, I guess it is." Tierno raised his hands, slowly clapping along with the crowd, "That's pretty awesome…"

"My dear Queen." King bowed down in front of Serena's table, "I will do everything in my power to become your protector." He stood up from the wooden stage, and grabbed a hold of Serena's hand, bringing it up to his helm, holding it up to the part where his lips would be.

Ash stared at King in anger, smacking his palms onto the table. He darted his gaze over to Serena who was just as shocked as everyone else. The crowd clearly enjoyed it, but he didn't. Ash averted his gaze downwards, and bit his bottom lip. His hands began to ball up, grabbing the tablecloth in the process. He wringed the cloth in his hands. "I am not going to lose to that guy!" he said with a fiery gaze in his eyes.

"You got that right Ash! I'm not going to lose to King either!" Tierno agreed, completely determined for the reason of just winning.

"I don't know." Clemont sighed, slouching back into his seat "I didn't want to do this in the first place. I suppose I'll just have to keep trying or else Bonnie will kill me."

* * *

"Daniel," Ash shouted out in anger as he stomped over to Serena's table. "I need to talk to you!"

Noticing the exasperation in Ash's eyes, Daniel shuffled behind Serena. "Hey Ash," Daniel began in a nervous tone.

"What's going on?" asked Serena who, along with Pikachu and Togepi, turned their heads from side to side to look at the two boys.

"Pika?"

Ash took a deep breath, trying to calm the anger that was building up inside of him, "It's nothing, Serena." Ash lied, a forced smile forming upon his face. "It's just… all of his fault why we're in this mess!" He pointed at the boy cowering behind Serena, his calm tone instantly dissipating.

"What!? It was an honest mistake!" Daniel's voice quivered. "It wasn't even my fault! It was just a coincidence!"

"What mistake?" asked Serena who stood up from her seat. She leaned over the table in an attempt to reach out to Ash. The table was far too wide though, and all she could reach was the air a few inches in front of him.

"He's the one who told me that the winner has to kiss the Queen," Ash gritted through his teeth. "And now…" He trailed off, his heart aching by the thought of Serena kissing another boy. He clenched his fists as he shut his eyes. Daniel's joke began to fill his mind.

"That's what this is about?" asked Serena who finally understood Ash's feelings. "You don't have to worry Ash, I'm not-"

"You can get Pikachu to shock me!" Daniel interrupted, trying to make the boy from Pallet feel better. "I'm sorry I said that!"

"Maybe you should kiss King yourself!" Ash spat out, fluttering his eyes open.

"Ash, I-" Serena tried once more, but could not get a word with the two boys bickering.

"Alright everyone!" Brady announced, taking his place on the center of the stage, "Shall we begin with the second round?"

The raven haired trainer glared at Daniel before reluctantly returning to his seat. He watched as Brady spun the wooden wheel to determine the next challenge. Ash stared at the wheel, hoping that it was going to be something that he could at least beat King at. He then looked at King who sat in his seat unmoving, wondering if he was feeling as anxious as the others. Without any kind of facial expression or movement, King was a lot more intimidating. There was a part of Ash that just hoped King was some kind of robot that was a part of the show to throw off the other contestants.

"And the second challenge will be jousting!" Brady announced, pulling Ash out of his thoughts.

Ash shook his head while Brady started off with the game rules and instructions.

"This jousting round will be quite different than any other kind of jousting match you have seen," Brady said as two employees walked onto the stage, both holding a clear bowl filled with folded pieces of paper. "The bowl on my right contains the Pokemon you will be riding for the match, and the bowl on my left contains the weapon you will be using. After each competitor receives their Pokemon and weapon, there will be two separate jousting matches, and the results from this match, along with the scores from the first round will determine the two lucky knights who will battle it out in the third and final round!"

Filled with excitement the crowd once again cheered as Ash, along with the other boys got ushered onto the stage to pick out their Pokemon and weapon. Tierno being the first to walk onto the stage slipped his hand into the first bowl to pick out his Pokemon. He stuck his tongue out as he swirled the paper around, grabbing a piece of parchment closest to the bottom of the bowl.

"My pokemon is," he said through the microphone as he unfolded the piece of paper. "Rapidash!" He reached into the second bowl, taking a moment to pull out his second piece of paper. "Walking cane…?" Confusion took over Tierno's face as one of the workers handed him a simple cane that aided old folks on their daily basis.

"I guess that's what Brady meant by different," whispered Clemont.

"That makes sense." Ash agreed as the spotlight shifted over to him.

Ash reached into the first bowl and pulled out a piece of parchment from the top. He unfolded it and read, "Zebstrika with…" He reached into the second bowl, curious to read what his weapon was going to be. "With a giant candy cane."

The same person who gave Tierno his cane came back with Ash's weapon in his hand. Grabbing onto the familiar holiday treat, Ash gaped staring at the thin film of plastic covering the entirety of the weapon. He picked up the candy cane, the smell of sugar and mint wafting over his nose. _No way…_ He thought to himself after noticing that the giant candy cane was not some lawn ornament, but instead a real, life size treat.

"Awww…" Clemont groaned, slouching in dismay.

Ash leaned over the inventor's shoulder, sneaking a glance at the crinkled paper that he just unfolded. He stifled a chuckle after reading the bold letters on the paper.

"What is it," asked Brady.

"A Rhyhorn," replied Clemont with a melancholy tone. After his failure of trying to ride a Skiddo, riding a Rhyhorn seemed completely impossible to him. Clemont sighed before reaching into the bowl to pick out his weapon. Without any care, he opened up the parchment. "With a plunger."

"It won't be too bad Clemont," Ash said, trying to cheer up his friend, "Think of it as another shot of getting it right!"

"I…" replied Clemont, deep in thought, "I suppose I could give it a try." He sighed before standing up straight.

"That's the spirit!" Ash smiled before darting his eyes over to King, whose iron gauntlet clanged against the rim of the glass. His smile was quick to fade away as he watched King grab the piece of parchment at the very top of the bowl.

"A Sawsbuck," read King. He reached into the second bowl. "With a clarinet."

"Rather interesting weaponry for all of you," Brady stroked his chin before looking ahead at Serena, "Now Serena, our Majesty for tonight, may you have the honours of picking out the pairings for this match?"

"Of course," replied Serena who reached into a separate glass container only containing four ballots. The honey blonde pulled out two ballots and opened them. "The first round will be… Ash versus Tierno."

"Alright then," Brady looked over to the competitors. "Then that makes Clemont versus King. Shall we commence with the jousting?!"

* * *

After getting fitted with a few extra pieces of armour, Ash walked over to the zebra like Pokemon, gently placing his palm on the pointed stripe above its nose. "I know we just met, but I hope that we can work well together in this round."

Zebstrika slightly flinched by the sudden contact coming from a new face, "Zebstrika…"

"Don't worry," said Ash. "I won't hurt you. I just hope that we can win this round together."

Ash took a few steps forwards, to the red curtains that shielded him and Zebstrika away from the crowd. He was told that, in a few minutes, he was supposed to make an entrance through the curtains, riding the Zebstrika. He turned his head, gesturing Zebstrika to walk over to him. The hooves of the Pokemon clacked against the wooden boards as Ash moved a small portion of the curtain to the side, revealing the anticipating crowd. Ash pointed to the honey blonde who has gained the company of Bonnie and Shauna at her table.

"That's Serena," said Ash. "She's a really amazing girl, and I really like her." His cheeks began to emit a shade of pink. "She has to kiss the winner of this competition, and I don't want her kissing anyone else but me, so will you help me out this round?" He pulled his hand away from the curtains, turning around to face Zebstrika.

"Zebstrika!"

"Thanks so much! We'll do great!"

* * *

The material of the red curtains brushed up against Ash's armour as he exited backstage, riding Zebstrika. He gave the crowd a once over before looking straight at Tierno who was mounted on his Rapidash at the opposite end. While he was getting ready, the stage changed from looking like a theatre to an arena. He looked downwards noticing that the wooden floorboards were removed and that the place was now covered in dirt. At the center were, at least a dozen, nicely lined up fences.

With the sound of a whistle, Zebstrika and Rapidash took their place on the field. Ash gripped closely to the curved part of his holiday weapon. He pointed the flat tip at Tierno as Tierno did the same with his walking cane. Once again, Brady began to explain the rules of his modified jousting game. "To make this game rather simply, the player has to knock the other off of their Pokemon. The player may only hit the metal plate that is attached to their upper left chest and shoulder. Hitting any other point will result in an automatic loss. If your weapon breaks, you may still use it, but if you drop it or lose it, it will also result in an automatic loss."

"I won't lose to you Ash!" Tierno called out after Brady took a seat, "I'm all pumped up and ready to win!"

"I am too!" Ash shot back, "And I already know that I'm going to win!"

With the sound of another whistle, Ash tightly gripped onto the reins of Zebstrika as Zebstrika charged forwards. The sudden movement threw Ash off balance, but he was quick to control his posture as he neared the center of the arena.

In the flash of a second, Ash's candy cane clanked against the metal exterior of Tierno's upper left chest. Tierno's walking stick did the same to Ash, and the impact sent the two, wobbling on their Pokemon. The two friends took a second to regain their composure as their Pokemon trudged onwards, coming to a halt as they neared the last of the fences.

"That was a close one!" Brady's voice sounded through his microphone.

Zebstrika whipped around, readying itself once more as it stood in place.

With the sound of the second whistle, Ash and Tierno were at it again. The two held their weapons straight ahead. This time, Tierno's cane missed Ash's chest and instead hit the air fairly close to his shoulder. Ash's candy cane hit the center of Tierno's bolted plate. The sound of a crack was heard as Tierno was thrown off balance, but not enough to have him fall off his Rapidash.

Ash sighed as he looked downwards at his weapon. His candy cane was now broken in half with a tiny bunch of remnants settling to opposite sides of the flimsy, plastic casing.

"Man…" Ash groaned as he held his weapon up to get a good look at it. The plastic was filled with two broken ends, and an empty space in the middle. How was he going to take a stab at Tierno's chest plate with this?

"It looks like Ash's weapon has broke! What is he going to do?" Brady asked, pushing the crowd to the edge of their seats.

Ash stared at the empty space between the two broken halves. If it didn't shatter into a few other, smaller remnants, he might have been able to keep using it. He turned his head to look at Serena who had a worried look on her face. She had her hands clasped together, staring straight ahead at his broken treat. _I'm not going to lose._ Ash began twisting the plastic until it was no longer flimsy. Just like wringing the excess water from a cloth, he twisted it to the point where the material became much more stiff. The two halves were now close enough together for him to simply, tightly grip onto the gap, and make it seem like his candy cane didn't break at all.

"It seems that Ash has dealt with his problem!" Brady said.

Ash took a deep breath as Zebstrika charged forwards for the third time. Just as he thought that his problem has been fixed, the impact of Zebstrika's steps caused Ash's hand to slightly slide downwards, causing the plastic to unwind freely. Without giving it a thought, Ash simply slung the weapon at Tierno's charging cane as a means to block it from hitting his chest. The plastic that was now starting to tear, wrapped around Tierno's cane, causing Tierno to lose his weapon.

Zebstrika continued onwards until it reached the end of the fence. Along the way, Ash's treat broke into a hundred of pieces, causing the plastic to wrap around the shaft of the cane. He held up the mess of his weapon that was tightly wrapped around Tierno's.

"Ash is the winner!" Brady announced.

* * *

Ash returned to his seat in exhaustion. He reached for his goblet and drank the remainder of his juice. With the constant amount of adrenaline rushing through his veins, and his mood changing from angry to happy to even excited, his mental state and mind was just all over the place.

"You were pretty lucky," said Tierno after returning to his own seat. "I did not see that coming."

"Me neither."

"It was still great going up against you. I wonder how Clemont and King's round will turn out."

"I'm sure it will be awesome," he replied as King and Clemont entered the arena, mounted on their Pokemon. Ash stood up, his eyes fixated on the inventor who was trembling atop his Rhyhorn. With shaky legs and trembling hands, Clemont's plunger wobbled in his grasp.

"You can do it Clemont!" Ash encouraged his friend. "You can do it!"

"Rhyhorn won't hurt you!" Serena added, "Have some confidence and you will be fine!"

Clemont gulped. "Easy for you to say," he said with fear as he held his plunger horizontally with the tip facing towards King. The dozen sets of eyes staring at him did not help one bit.

"Stop being a baby big brother!" Bonnie yelled out, cupping her hands around her mouth.

Embarrassed, Clemont pulled down on his metal face guard, covering his flustered expression. He grabbed hard onto the reins, and stiffened his grip on the plunger to prevent it from being shaky.

Ash turned his attention to King who was awaiting the sound of the whistle. Once again King was unmoving, completely filled with confidence for the challenge. If only Ash could see his face, then maybe his expression would say otherwise. There could be a possibility that King was profusely sweating with nervousness underneath his metal exterior, but Ash wouldn't know. His body language didn't show much either other than the fact that King was possibly a robot.

With the sound of the first whistle, Rhyhorn and Sawsbuck began charging forwards.

"Whoooaaa," Clemont yelled out in a panic. The impact of the charging Pokemon filled his mental state with complete fear.

"Clemont!" Ash called out, "Have some confidence."

Clemont's body lunged backwards, causing his helm to be thrown off his head. His plunger flailed in his hand, hitting the rear of the rhinoceros like Pokemon. Taking the hit as some form of attack, Rhyhorn panicked and stood on its hind legs as an attempt to shake Clemont off of its back.

"Rhyhorn!" Rhyhorn called out in distress as Clemont let go of the plunger, causing suctioned end of the plunger to stick onto his face.

"Big brother!" Bonnie called out with worry.

Rhyhorn began to gallop about the arena.

With Sawsbuck and his own safety in mind, King came to a stop just before reaching the center of the arena. He then dismounted from the deer like Pokemon and rubbed its side to keep it calm. While rubbing its side, King slowly walked the Sawsbuck back behind the curtains.

"Clemont you need to keep calm!" Serena called out as Brady began barking demands into a walkie talkie.

In a few short seconds, a few of the Pokemon caretakers entered the arena in an attempt to calm down the frightened Rhyhorn.

"I can't keep calm!" Clemont's voice sounded muffled from behind the plunger. "I can't breathe!" The inventor began tugging on the wooden stick as an attempt to remove the suction from his face. Letting go of the reins, the poor inventor fell onto the ground, landing hard on his rear.

With a determined look on her face, Serena got on top of the table and watched as Rhyhorn continued to circle the arena with the caretakers chasing after it. She kept her gaze on Rhyhorn just as it made another turn.

"What do you think you're doing?" A worked asked as he stared at the honey blonde who almost had her foot buried into a bowl of mashed potatoes. "Get back in your seat!"

The honey blonde then took a deep breath before jumping off her own table, and landing perfectly on the saddle on Rhyhorn's back.

"HEY! THAT'S DANGEROUS!"

"PIKACHU!"

"Serena!" Ash called out with concern. He wanted to help so badly, but there were a bunch of workers who were keeping him from entering the arena.

Serena tightly grabbed onto the reins of the panicked Rhyhorn and lifted her butt from the saddle. She reached downwards, patting Rhyhorn on its forehead. "It's going to be okay Rhyhorn," she said with a calm, soothing tone. "It's going to be fine. You will be fine."

Rhyhorn slowed down, but was still moving at an alarming rate. Suddenly, King came through the curtains, holding onto a portable stereo. He hit play and held the microphone close to the speakers. A relaxing tune containing the sounds of the woodwind instruments filled the room. The soothing sound caused Rhyhorn to come to a full stop before falling asleep on the spot.

* * *

"Well," Brady cleared his voice, his mind still shaken by the jousting round that didn't go as plan. "That was an interesting turn of events." He watched as Clemont was taken away on a gurney with a giant circle imprinted around his face. Bonnie walked along beside him, holding on to his hand.

"I suppose we should remove a plunger from our list of weapons. It was truly tragic as to what just happened to our dear competitor Clemont, but sadly, as they say in theatre, the show must go on!"

The crowd did not know how to respond to the sudden turn of events. They slowly clapped their hands, but their mind was now engraved with Clemont's unfortunate injury.

"Considering what just happened, King wins the jousting round by default. Paired off with the results from the first round, this puts Ash and King as the two competitors for the last round. Just like every other Thursday, the last round will be a Pokemon battle! Will King and Ash please take the stage?"

"Good luck Ash!" Tierno said. "You gotta win this one! I'd rather have you kiss Serena than that guy King!"

"Me too!" Ash held his fist up in the air.

* * *

The now pumped up trainer from Pallet stood at the center of the arena. Standing beside him was King, and standing ahead of him was Brady.

"Ash, on your left are five Pokeballs each containing a different Pokemon," said Brady. "The same goes for you King, but on your right. You both may choose one Pokeball to determine your Pokemon for the one on one battle. Serena will then choose another ballot containing the kind of arena your Pokemon will be battling on. Now will you both please choose a Pokeball from your own table."

Ash simply nodded before heading towards the table on his left. He stared at the five Pokeballs that were nicely lined up at the center of the table. He eyed each one in hopes that maybe one of the Pokeballs would give him some kind of hint as to which one contained a strong Pokemon. Taking a deep breath, Ash reached for the fourth Pokeball from his left and returned back to the center of the arena where King already stood with his choice.

"Alright! Now Queen Serena, will you have the honours of reading out the choice of arena for the battle?"

With a look of uncertainty on her face, Serena read, "The choice of arena for this battle will be… '." She looked up from her piece of parchment to Brady with confusion. "The Tilting Field?"

* * *

Ash stood atop a platform as King did the same on the opposite end of the arena. The floor beneath them began to creak as the ground in front of them opened up, revealing a typical Pokemon battlefield. With the sound of a few more clicks, the field ascended from the ground and began levitating.

 _What's happening?_ Ash thought to himself as he heard a click from his own platform before it began to ascend. His and King's platform, along with the battlefield was now, at most, twenty feet away from the ground.

In a few short minutes, two Altaria's appeared from two hidden entrances located near the ceiling of the restaurant. With a camera hanging around both of the flying Pokemon's necks, the two Altaria's circled around the battlefield as a means to film a close up of the battle for the audience.

"The rules are simple!" Brady announced, ascending from his own platform. "Since this is the Balance Field, then there are a few guidelines I must go over. To win, you may not directly hit the other Pokemon or it will result in an automatic loss."

"WHAT!?" Ash asked, exasperated. "What do you mean? That's what a Pokemon battle is. To faint the other Pokemon by hitting them with attacks… or it isn't a battle at all!"

"Ahh yes, that is true, but you are forgetting that this is the Lumiose Castle Restaurant, and you're here to experience the Lumiose Castle experience." Brady simply winked. "Now continuing with the guidelines. You may use attacks to aid your Pokemon with staying on top of the battlefield. You may also use those attacks to somehow knock your opponents Pokemon off the battlefield without actually hitting them. Now, you may release your Pokemon from their Pokeballs."

Ash stared at the Pokeball in his hand. _Please don't fail me. I'm so close to winning._ He threw the Pokeball onto the field, revealing a Krabby. The raven haired trainer took out his Pokedex to examine which moves were available for Krabby to then looked up to see King's partner for the battle, a Bulbasaur.

"Alright then!" said Brady, "You may begin!"

Both Ash and King remained silent as they took in their surroundings. There wasn't much to deal with. How were they going to knock off their opponent without actually hitting them?

"Here it comes!" said Brady with excitement.

"Here what co-" The raven haired trainer was unable to finish his sentence as he watched the battlefield slowly tilt to the right. _So this is why it's called the Tilting Field._ Ash kneeled down, taking note of the thickness of the battlefield.

"Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip and latch to the other end." King issued his own Pokemon. Bulbasaur used its vines to latch onto Ash's side as the battlefield continued tilting, almost reaching about forty five degrees.

"Krabby, use your claws to dig a hole into the ground!"

"Koo Kee." With quick movements, Krabby created a small burrow in the ground, and used the side of his newly formed hole to keep itself straight up.

Once again, the battlefield began tilting in the opposite direction, rendering Bulbasaur's grip onto the other side of the platform, useless. Bulbasaur retracted his vines as the battlefield straightened out.

Ash watched as the battlefield began to tilt to the left much faster than it did the first time when it went to the right.

"Krabby walk to the opposite end!" Ash issued. He couldn't win the battle if Krabby was going to hide in a hole the entire time to keep it from falling off the battlefield. The battlefield seemed to tilt much further than the first time, creating a much more steep terrain for their Pokemon to deal with.

"Bulbasaur, run to the opposite end like Krabby!" King issued.

Ash could sense the panic in King's own robotic like voice. Neither of them was sure as to what they were going to do to win this challenge.

"Krabby, use Scald on the ground all around you!" Ash commanded.

Aiming at the ground ahead of it, Krabby shot a steaming burst of water in front of the grass type Pokemon.

"Bulba!" Bulbasaur panicked as it took a step into the scorching ground around it. It began to slide down the battlefield that was angled like a ramp.

"Bulbasaur use Vine Whip to latch onto the other side," said King causing the grassy Pokemon to unleash its vines.

Just as Bulbasaur latched onto the other edge, the field began to tilt once more.

Without any direction from Ash, Krabby scurried across the field and back into the hole it created earlier. For the next few tilts, the two Pokemon continued with the exact same moves – running to the other end, using Scald, using Vine Whip. It was becoming very much boring for everyone, even for Ash.

As the field straightened out for what seemed to feel like the hundredth time, King issued Bulbasaur to use Razor Leaf directly onto the battlefield. "Keep using Razor Leaf!" King commanded once more, causing the grassy Pokemon to endlessly shoot its sharp leaves towards the field.

In just a few seconds, the ground began to crack, causing the field to crumble at the edges.

 _He's trying to break the field._ Ash balled up his fists. "Krabby use Mud shot all over the ground!" Ash commanded as an attempt to keep the ground from falling apart.

The two Pokemon continued with their attacks, until the constant impact caused the battlefield to finally crumble into a thousand of pieces. Ash held his arms up to his face to shield himself from the debris that created a thick fog around the arena.

Everyone in the audience did the same before standing from their own seats to inspect the results of the battle.

As the floating mess of debris cleared the center of the stage, the only thing that could be seen was Bulbasaur hanging onto a stage light with one of his vines. The other was holding onto a broken piece of the battlefield. Below the grass type Pokemon was Krabby who fell on top of the entire mess with swirls in its eyes. It somehow fainted in the process.

"I guess that makes King the winner!" Brady announced, and the crowd bursts into cheers.

* * *

The raven haired trainer kicked a trash bin as he heard Brady's voice through the stony walls. The calls of the crowd and a round of applause then followed.

This couldn't be happening. Battling was supposed to be his thing. King had archery. He got the perfect score. He was especially lucky when it came to the jousting round. Clemont's fear of riding a Rhyhorn gave King an automatic win. It was completely unfair.

"Ash!" Tierno called out, peeking his head through the door. "King is getting on the stage to accept his kiss!"

"I don't think I want to watch it."

"Why not?" Tierno asked after closing the door behind him. He walked over to Ash with a look of concern. "Is it because you lost? You think this lost will affect you in the League or something like that?"

"No it's not that."

"Is it because you don't get to kiss Serena? Because I was looking forward to kissing her if I won. If I had the guts right now, I would push King off the stage to get that kiss. The crowd would love that you know."

Ash looked up, his hope once again being restored. "You would do that?"

"Why not? I bet Brady would love it too. I just don't have the guts to-"

Ash bolted towards the wooden doors, pulling on the knob.

"Ash! What are you doing?!" Tierno questioned before following behind the quickly moving boy from Pallet Town.

Ash bolted down a few set of stairs before manoeuvring himself around the objects and Pokemon that were backstage.

"Now who is the mysterious boy hiding beneath that helm?" asked Brady who began circling King on the stage. "You are quite the competitor, I must say."

"Serena!" Ash called out, but was quickly put to a stop by a few workers who stood at the edge of the stage.

"What are you doing here?" One of the workers hissed. "You're supposed to be seated at the loser's circle."

"I'm going to claim that kiss!"

"You lost! You don't get to have that kiss!"

Ash began to struggle between the arms of the two employees, "But it's supposed to be mine!"

"It's just a game man!" The other worker groaned, clearly having a hard time keeping Ash in place. "I guess that Serena girl is pretty, but man! Just stick to admiring her on the screen. She's a Performer ain't she?"

"She's also a very important person to me!" Ash grunted as he pulled himself free from their strong grip.

Ash watched as King took a step forward, the spotlight shining on him. Everyone stared in anticipation, waiting for King to remove his helm. Ash slightly turned his head to see the workers ready themselves to once again get a hold of him. He returned his attention back to King and began running across the stage. Everyone's eyes were glued to King, so no one even noticed the raven haired trainer scurry across the area.

Stopping just a few feet away from King, Ash watched as the mysterious boy grabbed onto the bottom of his helm, pulling it up in the process. The first thing that Ash saw was the familiar blue hair. Instead of its usual puffiness, it was weighed down by what seemed to look like sweat.

The silence that once overtook the room was now replaced by gasps and whispers.

"Ash!" Tierno called out, easily breaking through the arms of the workers. "Is that?"

Ash nodded as the familiar Performer cocked her head to the side, sending a wink towards the plump trainer.

"It's…" Ash began, dumbfounded.

"Miette!" Serena finished off.

"No way!" Tierno protested. "That can't be!"

"You're King?" asked Ash as he walked to Miette, along with Tierno to make sure that it was actually her.

"Yeah, it's me!" she responded, annoyed by Tierno pinching her cheeks.

"How is this possible? How did your name even get pulled from the box?" asked Tierno, "There were like twenty names in there!"

"That was all me." Brady replied, his voice sounding less deep and husky.

"What are you talking about?" asked Ash as Brady began peeling away his own beard. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"

"It's me." Brady peeled off the rest of his facial hair before taking off his own wig.

"Calem?!" Serena yelled out in shock. "What are you doing here!?"

"Hey Serena," said Calem after removing his wig cap. He began to tousle his own hair, letting his tresses fall into place.

"I am so confused right now. What is going on?" Tierno shook his head in disbelief. The crowd didn't know what to think either.

"I was tired of you and Shauna arguing about which gender is better, so I set this whole thing up." Miette began, "I remember back during the Performer's event, Calem said that he knew the owner of this place. After Trevor suggested that we should check it out, I called Calem to get me some kind of knight suit from Valerie. I then went through Clemont's gadgets and managed to make a voice changer with his other failed inventions. Calem really wanted to be a part of the whole thing, so I told him if he could somehow be Brady for the night with the real Brady's permission, then picking my name out of the bowl wouldn't be too hard."

"So he didn't actually pick out any of your names?" asked Serena. "He just said all of _your_ names?"

"I really wanted to tell you Serena," said Calem, turning his attention to the honey blonde. "But I was sworn to secrecy." He grabbed a hold of her hand. "I had to help your friend. Maybe you would like me more!"

"So none of our names were actually picked…" Ash said, still shocked, "What made you choose Serena as Queen? Why not some random person in crowd? You weren't going to compete against her."

The blue haired Performer leaned in close to Ash's ear. "I know what's going on between you two," she whispered with her hand up to her mouth to shield her words from everyone else. "I just wanted to see you jealous. Its really entertaining Ash." Miette giggled.

Ash's face turned bright red. He wasn't sure if he should be angry or relieved that Serena didn't have to kiss anyone.

"So how about the events? Did he choose archery just because you're good at it? And how about the real Brady? Where is he?!" Tierno's voice went up an octave.

"He didn't choose any. You saw the wheel spin. I couldn't control that," answered Miette. "I guess I was just lucky with what was chosen, but in my defense, I'm pretty confident that I could beat you all in every event here." A smug look spread across Miette's face, "And the real Brady was behind the stage the entire time."

"And I must say, I think Calem here did a fine job imitating me," said the real Brady, coming through a set of curtains. The whole crowd remained silent not knowing how to react.

"Yeah," replied Miette. "He gave me that stereo and tape that helped calm down Rhyhorn."

"Still a tragedy though… I feel bad about your friend Clemont."

Every nodded their head in agreement.

"So… What made you want to destroy the battlefield in the last challenged," asked Ash, breaking the silence.

"Oh." Miette laughed. "At that point I was tired of wearing this suit. It's so hot in here. I did it without really thinking it through."

"Wow…" Ash responded with a tinge of disappointment.

"I told you Tierno!" Shauna barked over the crowd before bolting down the set of stairs. "If Miette can pull this off without even ME knowing while beating three of your boys, it proves that girls are better than boys!"

"That's cheating!" Tierno yelled out, and the two once again resumed with their debate.

* * *

Tuckered from the eventful evening, Ash dragged himself onto the bed that was deemed his for their stay in the Pokemon Center.

"We are never going to that restaurant on a Thursday ever again," groaned Ash as he laid on his back, his arms and legs fully extended.

"Pikachu?"

Ash groaned in pain. The soreness reverberating throughout his body began to feel much more unpleasant now that his mind was no longer filled with winning the games. He still couldn't believe that Miette was King all along, and that Calem came all the way from Laverre City just to be a part of her plan. It relieved him though. In the end, Serena didn't have to kiss anyone.

"Ash?" Serena's voice could be heard, followed by three knocks on the door. "Can I come in? You're not changing or anything are you?"

"No, you can come in," he replied, trying to peel himself away from the comfort of the duvet. He was quick to give up though as his body from the neck down felt like it was buried beneath a hundred pounds of sand. He instead, stared ahead at the ceiling, his eyes focused on a small scratch. He slightly shifted his eyes to the side to see the door open, followed by Serena and Togepi entering the room.

"I think Togepi doesn't need us to sleep together tonight," she said as she sat on the edge of Clemont's bed, right beside Ash's. Togepi jumped out of Serena's arms and onto Ash's mattress, making itself comfortable next to Pikachu.

It was decided that, all the girls were going to sleep in the same room while the boys slept in another. Even with that set up, for Togepi's sake, Ash thought that maybe Trevor or Tierno would be willing to switch with Serena, so that Togepi would be able to sleep without a worry.

"Why not?" Ash frowned. Gathering the remainder of his strength, he pulled his weight off the bed, and sat up with his legs crossed. He enjoyed sleeping next to Serena. In fact, it's made him sleep much better than he's ever had.

"I've been with it all day. It misses you," she replied. "Plus I want it to learn to be able to not have us together all the time." She looked up, noticing the melancholy look on Ash's face. "Sometimes we might be doing our own thing, and I just don't want it to cry all the time. I mean, while you were busy with the events, there were a few times where Togepi would cry because you weren't sitting beside me."

"First I lose the kiss, and now I lose my time with you?" Ash teased, causing Serena to frown. He understood what she meant, and it made complete sense to him. He just enjoyed how Togepi brought them closer together. "Did you really not know that Miette was King the entire time?" he asked, changing the subject.

Serena nodded, "No. None of us even knew that she was plotting it."

"I guess that proves that girls really are the best." He chuckled.

"Ash," said Serena nervously as she began fumbling with her ribbon.

"Huh? What is it?" Ash eyed her fingers as they interlaced around the silky material.

"I just want you to know that you don't have to worry about anything."

"What are you talking about?"

"I only like you Ash," she said in a quietly, meek tone. Turning her gaze downwards, Serena bit her lip in a nervous manner. "You don't need to worry about me kissing another boy."

Ash's face flushed red. He rubbed his nape feeling kind of silly. Serena was the one that confessed her feelings to him, and even admitted that she's liked him for years. "You're right," said Ash. "It's just… when I see a guy making some kind of move on you, it makes me angry." He sighed before falling backwards onto the bed, his head snuggly landing onto his pillow.

"It's okay Ash," said Serena, "You don't have to worry about anything." She smiled before standing up. "I'm going to get ready for bed okay? I'll see you in the morning."

He watched as Serena headed towards the door.

"Serena?" Ash called out as he watched her grab onto the knob.

The honey blonde turned her head, "What is it Ash?"

"You were really great with the Rhyhorn," he complimented, "But please don't do anything like that again. You really worried me."

"I'll stop when you stop doing reckless things for Pokemon too," she winked before leaving the room.

* * *

"It was really nice seeing you again!" Shauna said with a bright smile, "I hope to see you guys again before we cross paths at the League. I'm going to have to give Tierno my support!"

Tierno stood beside the brunette Performer with a condescending look. "You're only saying that because I finally gave in and said that girls are better than guys." Tierno rolled his eyes before turning his attention to Ash and the others, "But, it was really nice seeing you all again." He tried his best to mimic Shauna's smile, but had a hard time because of his loss.

"It was really great." Serena smiled, making Tierno's own smile much more genuine. "It would be nice to bump into you all before the League. I really enjoyed my time with all of you!"

"Me too!" Ash agreed.

"I even took a lot of pictures," said Trevor holding his camera up in the air. "Maybe next time you guys will get to see them!"

"That would be great!" Bonnie said.

"Yeah, I can't wait to see them," said Clemont whose injuries were no longer visible.

"I just wish that we could have had more time together!" Calem sighed before grabbing onto Serena's hands, "It's not too late you know! You can still become an assistant to Valerie!"

"She already rejected that offer!" Ash spat out, smacking Calem's hands away from Serena's. The two began butting heads, arguing with one another.

"Just when you think that those two are getting along…" Clemont rubbed his head, feeling rather embarrassed for his friends.

"You need to learn to fight like a man too big brother!" Bonnie said, pushing her brother towards the two bickering boys.

Miette walked around the two boys, leaning into Serena "Maybe I should have let Ash win the Pokemon battle," she whispered. "I would have loved to see you guys kiss." She winked

"Miette!" Serena said out loud, flustered by her friends comment.

"Hey Ash!" Daniel yelled out, running in the direction of the group of friends who were saying their good byes.

Ash turned his focus to the boy heading his way as Bonnie began forcing her brother to have some kind of argument Calem.

Out of breath Daniel said, "I'm really sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean to say those things. I swear I wasn't apart of Miette's plot. I didn't even know her until yesterday!"

"That's okay," replied Ash, "I let my feelings get the best of me."

"No it's fine. I would feel the same if the girl I liked had to kiss someone else." Daniel rubbed his nape. "I would give you more tickets to the buffet, but I don't think you'd want to go there for awhile."

"You got that right," Ash replied as he held his hand, gesturing Daniel to shake his hand.

"Pika Pika!"

 _And so, the conclusion of the valiant knight has come to an end. Miette has proved that girls are indeed better than boys, and Ash's worry about Serena kissing another boy has finally come to a rest. Filled with energy, the group of heroes are ready to set afoot towards the League, as the journey continues!_

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Coordinators & An Old Friend:** On their journey to Santulune, the group of heroes come across a festival for Coodinators - a contest similar to Performing that is being newly introduced to the Kalos Region. The group, decide to check it out and Ash bumps into Dawn, his travelling companion from Sinnoh. Ash introduces Dawn to the group, and Serena finally gets her own taste of jealousy.

* * *

 **A/N:** So the next chapter will finally be a jealous Serena (to all those who've been eagerly waiting for a jealous Serena). I hope you guys look forward too it! :)

P.S: I'm sorry if the competitions were anticlimactic or boring. I'm not very good at writing battles or anything like that. I'm only really good at romance haha, but you know the way I see it... You gotta give it a try to improve. :)


	14. Coordinators & An Old Friend

**A/N: Hey guys! Just as an important note, I've never watched Ash's adventures in Sinnoh or Hoenn. :( I know I'm a failure! haha. So I'm sorry if Dawn and Paul are OCC (I kinda think my characters are OCC from time to time anyways). I hope you still enjoy it. haha. Also, I was originally going to have Team Rocket in the chapter, but the chapter was going to be too long if I did that (I aim to be between 5000-6000 words most of the time). Idk if its a good or bad thing, but they have been cut out. **

**Anywho thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. I know it was pretty long. Thanks to (2 Guest, doc boy, espeon44, Tenzalucard123, ultimateCCC, and FantasyLover88).**

* * *

 **Summary:** On their journey to Santulune, the group of heroes come across a festival for Coodinators - a contest similar to Performing that is being newly introduced to the Kalos Region. The group, decide to check it out and Ash bumps into Dawn, his travelling companion from Sinnoh. Ash introduces Dawn to the group, and Serena finally gets her own taste of jealousy.

* * *

 **EP 14: Coordinators & An Old Friend**

With the warmth of the sun beaming down on the grassy field, the bunch of Sunflora moved about the area in a hectic manner. With their heads held up high, the flock embraced the warmth of the glowing star, causing their petals to look much more vibrant.

The young Performer sipped on the remainder of her Mago Berry juice before reaching for her hat, and tightly fitting it back onto her head. Placing her empty cup on the table, she watched as the Sunflora bustled about the field in complete sync. Watching them move around was giving her some kind of idea for a future Performance.

Hearing Togepi's voice, she then turned her head to the left to take a glance at Togepi who was busily finishing its lunch with the other Pokemon. Now that Togepi was fully adjusted to the group, it seemed to prefer being around Pikachu all the time rather than her or Ash. Even when it was time for bed, Togepi would fall asleep instantaneously with Pikachu by its side.

"We should probably resume our walk soon," said Clemont while piling up the empty dishes. "If we clean up fast enough, I think we'll be able to reach Santalune City before night fall."

"That sounds good to me," replied Ash who already stood from his seat, stretching his arms. "If we reach Santalune, then that means that we're much closer to the League! That just pumps me up!" He began jogging on the spot.

Serena giggled. "You should save all that energy for the remainder of the trip. We still have a long way to go." She took the plates from Clemont's grasp. "I can clean these," she said. "You're always cooking for us Clemont. You should rest too. Besides, if I clean these you can put everything else away, and we'll be able continue with our journey much faster."

"I never really thought about that," said Clemont, stroking his chin. A familiar expression began to overtake his face. With the lenses of his glasses emitting a bright glow, the inventor reached into his knapsack. "The future is now thanks to science!" He pulled out what looked to be a miniature ClemBot that was about a foot tall. "I call it The Miniature ClemBot: The Ultimate Cleaner!"

"Well I don't think I have to ask what it does," said Bonnie who shook her head with a tinge of disappointment. Leave it to her big brother to come up with long, boring and complicated names.

Ash's eyes began to twinkle at the sight of his friends new invention. "Wow," he said astonished, "Science is so amazing!"

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu cheered as it stood beside its owner.

"Togepri!"

"Let's just hope that it works..." said Serena.

"Alright then! Clemontic Gear on!" The inventor shouted out with excitement. Opening up a small compartment located on Mini ClemBot's back, Clemont reached out towards a switch, pulling it upwards, and activating his new invention in the process.

"Hi there. I am ClemBot," said the invention in the same robotic voice as the ClemBot that resided in Lumiose City. "What would you like me to clean?"

"Will you please clean these plates?" Clemont asked as he reached over for the dishes that were in Serena's grasp.

"Of course," it replied as it's arms extended, reaching for the plates.

In a matter of seconds, ClemBot began to clean the dishes with the cleaning agents that were built into its system. With the help of a few retractable arms that came from its body, it used one hand to hold onto a sponge, another to dip the dishes into a tub of water, and the last to dry off the dishes with a dry cloth.

"I think I'm impressed with this one," Serena said eying the studious invention, "For such a small robot you were able to fit all of these things inside of it."

"It is a bit slow though," said Bonnie, keeping an eye on just how long it was taking for Mini ClemBot to actually get through one plate. Even with that, the end results weren't that pleasing. There were still a few blemishes of tamato sauce left on the dishes.

"I can fix that," said Clemont with complete determination. As he lifted the metal flap that controlled Mini Clembot's setting, the young inventor pressed on a few buttons, causing his cleaning robot to finish its task more efficiently.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Serena asked after shuffling behind the raven haired trainer, placing her hands on his shoulders as she peeked over his right one. She was anticipating the explosion of another failure.

"Yeah, of course. It will be fi-" Clemont was unable to finish his sentence as the sounds of a few unwanted clanks came from inside his Mini ClemBot. Soon after, the invention blew up in their faces causing a loud explosion that scared away the bunch of Sunflora.

Serena, who took cover behind the boy from Pallet was the only one to barely suffer the effects of the explosion. Bonnie and Clemont got knocked backwards from the explosion, their bottoms falling first onto the ground. Ash fell backwards, but was saved from the honey blonde who grabbed onto him. All three were now covered in soot with not a single piece of hair resting in the right place.

"I think that's your problem big brother," said Bonnie in a daze. "You always have a need to crank up the settings, and everything blows up in our faces when you do that!"

"I'm sorry Bonnie!" Clemont apologized, "I suppose I should stop cranking up the settings then..." He let out a small chuckle.

"Well," Serena began as she scanned the area, "Our plans of reaching Santalune before the sun goes down is not happening with this mess."

"Sorry about that..." Clemont shyly apologized.

* * *

"What do you think is going on down there?" Bonnie asked, staring down at the vast field that once contained a gathering of Sunflora.

Just below the hill that they considered their rest stop, was a bunch of people exiting their own vehicles, carrying a bunch of materials to the open space.

"Maybe there's an event happening here," Ash suggested, squinting his eyes for some kind of sign.

"Maybe it's a show!" Bonnie said excitedly, hopping on the spot.

"Nenene!"

"Maybe we should check it out," said Ash who was eying a rack of clothing that was being pushed through the field. The ribbons, and other colors that were catching his attention reminded him of the outfits Serena wore during her performances. He had a feeling that whatever was going on down there was going to be something that she enjoyed.

"Are you sure Ash?" Serena asked in shock.

"Pika Pika?"

"Why are you surprised?" He asked, noticing the look that they all shared.

"It's just that... knowing you, you would want to reach the League as soon as possible."

"Well I'm not complaining," said Bonnie who began running down the hill. "I want to check it out!"

"Bonnie you're going to hurt yourself if you run too fast!" Clemont called out as he carefully began his own descend.

Serena watched as Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder the second Togepi began to follow behind Clemont. Thanks to its experience with Misty's Togepi, Pikachu knew when it had to keep a careful watch on the egg like Pokemon. It's eyes were glued to it like a hawk hunting down its prey.

Serena smiled at Pikachu's actions before she turned her head, and looked upwards at the raven haired boy who stood behind her, watching Pikachu protect its new buddy.

"Are you sure you want to check things out here? It might not even be interesting, and we'll be behind with reaching Santalune City."

"Serena," said Ash, breaking out of his gaze. "To be honest, I saw a few things down there that reminded me of your performances. I feel like it's something you'd like to see." He blushed as he rubbed his cheek with his index finger.

"Really?" She asked, her own cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink. "That's really sweet of you, Ash."

"Well, you're always taking interest in everything I like. I want to do the same for you."

Serena smiled at the boy before raising her hand to feel for the blue ribbon on her dress. Before she could even feel the material with her fingertips, Ash extended his own arm, grabbing onto her hand.

"I'm right here Serena," he said, followed by a short chuckle. "You don't need to constantly reach for that ribbon."

"It's a habit..." She frowned.

Noticing her lips curve downwards, Ash leaned down, prepared to give the honey blonde a peck on the cheek. He bit his bottom lip before his lips came into contact with the surface of her soft skin.

Surprised, Serena's eyes widened as her cheeks turned a shade of crimson. As Ash pulled his head away from her personal space, the two made eye contact. Without having to say a word, the two of them knew what each other wanted. Without the slightest bit of hesitation, the two leaned in, ready to share a kiss.

"Hurry up you two!" Bonnie yelled, pulling the two out of their moment. "I want to see what's going on!"

Serena jerked her head away from the raven haired boy, and whipped around, flustered by Bonnie's sudden outburst. She looked below her to see Bonnie's eyes glued to the event that was beginning their setup. Beside her was Clemont, kneeling with his hands on his knees, gasping for air. On her other side was Pikachu, Dedenne, and Togepi, chasing each other around in circles.

"Coming!" Ash yelled back before grabbing Serena's hand and leading her down the hill.

* * *

The foursome wandered about the field, eying most of the objects with curiosity. All of the items that caught the young honey blonde's attention were glittery trinkets, and dresses. Serena's eyes fell upon a ornate brooch. Hypnotized by the beauty of the brooch, Serena sauntered over to the booth that was nearly finished with being set up.

 _Ooof!_ A piece of hardwood smacked against her right bicep.

"Oww." The distracted Performer groaned as she rubbed the area that was emitting an unpleasant sensation.

"Serena?" Ash scurried over to his friend in worry, "Are you okay?" He began to inspect the bruise that was forming on her arm.

"I'm fine Ash," she said. "It's my fault. I got distracted. There's so many people still setting up their booths, I should have paid more attention."

"You got that right," said the male stranger who set the piece of hardwood on top of a table. "The festival hasn't even started yet. You should wait by the edge of the field with everyone else."

Ash stood up straight, not liking the tone that was coming from the stranger. He whipped his head, his eyes widening at the sight of his old rival from Sinnoh. "Paul?" He questioned, "What are you doing here!?" He clenched his fist

"Oh," The purple haired trainer blinked. "Oh looks it's Ash." He deadpanned. "You need to meet more friends who are aware of their surroundings."

"Maybe you need to watch where you're going!" Ash lashed out. "You could have hurt anyone! Even people who are setting up around you!"

"It's not my fault this plank of wood is long," Paul responded, expressionless.

Serena stared at the two in confusion. She could tell that Ash wasn't a big fan of this stranger who went by the name of Paul. She felt like she was entitled to some kind of introduction, but Ash's feelings towards this boy clearly showed that maybe, she should stay just stay invisible. Perhaps this was the right time for her to look for Bonnie and Clemont who somehow disappeared during the minute she decided to get a better look at that brooch. It seemed that Pikachu and Togepi disappeared along with them.

"Paul!" Another voice sounded, this time a female. "Are you fighting with the booth next to us again!? You better not!"

Serena turned her head from side to side, trying to find the girl who was yelling out. In a short second, a second individual came from behind the newly setup tent. She had long blue hair, and wore a white toque on top of her head. She wore a black top, and a pink skirt, and had a Piplup trailing along behind her.

"I asked you to help out! All you've been so far, is a pain!" The blueheaded girl gritted through her teeth, "What did I tell you abou-" The girl trailed off before noticing the boy who stood behind Paul. Her jaw dropped, and the hammer she held dropped along with it. "Ash!? Is that you? No way!"

"Dawn!" Ash called out, pushing Paul aside. "It really is you! What are you doing in Kalos?!"

 _Dawn? Ash knows this girl?_ Serena thought to herself as she watched the two high five, giving each other a wink. She continued to watch as the two began to catch up with one another, sharing the new things they have encountered on their separate journeys.

Serena stood their quietly, an unwanted sensation arising from the pit of her stomach. She hoped that maybe it was something that she ate, but she knew the feeling all too well. It was jealousy. She knew that Ash travelled with other girls in the past, so it was obvious that he would have gotten close to all of those girls, but seeing how Ash interacted with one of them was making her uncomfortable.

"This is my friend Serena," said Ash, pulling the honey blonde away from her thoughts. "She's a Performer."

"Really?" Dawn said, amused. "That's so cool! Do you think you could perform today? It would be nice to have a Performer up on that stage, and a bunch of us Coordinators would like to see how Performers well... perform."

Serena clasped her hands together, realizing that she was so absorbed in her own thoughts, she hasn't listened to a single word that's been coming out of Dawn or Ash's mouth. "Uhm.." She began, nervously.

"I think it's a great idea, Serena," said Ash, giving her his undivided attention. "You haven't performed in front of a crowd since the Master Class. I think you'll love it."

"Oh well, I guess I could perform. I do miss being on stage."

"That's great! I'll inform the people of the show later."

Serena smiled, pushing her jealous feelings aside. Ash said he liked her, she had nothing to worry about. Besides, she would act the same way if she saw one of her childhood friends too (with the exception of Calem).

* * *

Shortly after Dawn's introduction, Clemont and Bonnie found Serena and Ash lined up at a food stand. As soon as the place opened up to the general public, the smell of fresh bread wafted over Ash's nose, and he couldn't help but follow the smell across the field to the stand that was selling buns. Bonnie, with quick thinking, assumed that the two might be there, and she was correct. Ash then took the siblings to Dawn for an introduction, and Pikachu had a hearty reunion with its friend Piplup. The small group then decided to take a seat at one of the picnic tables where Clemont and Bonnie enthusiastically took interest in what it meant to be a Pokemon Coordinator.

Sitting there, slowly devouring her own bun, Serena listened to Dawn explain why her and a bunch of other Coordinators from Hoenn and Sinnoh were out venturing into other regions. They simply wanted other regions to take notice of Coordinators, and wanted to raise money to start up a Coordinating school. She now understood why there were so many stands selling things, and why there were so many stages with people showing off their Pokemon. What Dawn was doing certainly made an impression on the young Performer, and it wasn't helping much with setting her jealous feelings aside. It was making her wonder if there was anything going on between Dawn and Ash when they were travelling together in Sinnoh.

"Why isn't May here?" asked Ash as he stuffed a red bean bun into his mouth. "She's a Coordinator too."

 _May? Whose May?_ Serena bit her bottom lip. She was trying her best to enjoy Dawn's presence for Ash's sake. She laughed when they laughed, and asked questions about Coordinating with the siblings, but the more she watched Ash and Dawn interact, the more it was bothering her.

"She's actually promoting Coordinating in Unova with a different group. A lot of us thought it would be quicker and much more effective to split into two different groups," said Dawn before digging into her own bun.

"That's great. I'm so happy for you guys." Ash replied, reaching into his paper bag for another treat. The boy from Pallet sighed after noticing that he finished all three of the buns he bought as a snack. As Dawn looked away, the raven haired trainer reached into her paper bag, grabbing one of the three buns that she had left.

"Hey!" Dawn smacked the bun out of Ash's hand. "You think you can just take my food?"

"I didn't think you'd notice." Ash rubbed his nape in embarrassment. "You never noticed when we were in Sinnoh."

"It's because of you that I'm able to sense when people are taking away my food!" Dawn placed the bun back into the bag before sealing it closed. "I want to give these to Paul and the others who are running our booth. They all helped with making the brooches."

"I can buy you more snack if you'd like As-" Serena tried, but was easily interrupted by Bonnie who stood from her seats, waving her arms out in front of the raven haired trainer who was bickering with Dawn.

"You made those brooches?" Bonnie chimed in, remembering the ornate pieces she saw not too long ago.

"Yeah." Dawn simply grabbed Ash's empty paper bag and shoved it in front of his face to stop him from talking. "Do you like them? May and I learned how to make them from this lady back in Sinnoh. We thought it would be a great item to sell."

"They are so cute!" Bonnie squealed. "Do you think you can teach me how to make one when you have the time? I know Serena would love to make one too!"

"That would be nice..." Serena said quietly, but no one was able to hear her.

Clemont reached into his knapsack, digging for something through the heaps of scrap and tools. "I think I have an invention that would hel-"

"No invention!" Bonnie cut him off. "Do you now remember what happened this morning, big brother?"

"Bonnie! It was an honest mistake!"

"What happened?" Dawn leaned in close to Ash, her ear close to his lips, waiting for an answer.

"Well, Clemont is an inventor, but his inventions tend to blow up in our faces most of the time." Ash replied, his mind going dizzy after the events that took place just a couple of hours ago.

"So you're an inventor?" Dawn said, excitedly. "I would love to see one of your inventions!"

"Really? I have so many! Is there any particular thing you would like to see? I guarantee you that I will possibly have something for what you have in mind!" Clemont said.

Dawn began stroking her chin, "Well I have to help out setting out the main stage, how about something that can lug around a bunch of heavy materials?"

"I do have something for that!"

"Great! How about you guys all help out with setting up the stage? We can use all the help we can get!"

"I'm in!" Ash said, standing from his own seat.

"Me too!" Bonnie agreed.

* * *

Dawn stood beside Clemont's Gurdurr Lifter v2.0, listening to how Clemont has built such an incredible looking invention. It seemed that Clemont's Gurdurr like robot was able to help lug around a bunch of wooden slats without any kind of malfunction for the last half hour.

"Hey Ash!" The bluenette called out after Clemont resumed controlling his robot. "I bet I can secure most of the floorboards on the stage than you!"

"You're on, Dawn!" Ash called out, placing his paintbrush into his bucket of blue paint.

"Ash," said Serena. "Shouldn't you finish painting your part of the backdrop?" She pointed to the rest of the canvas that still had to be painted. She found it kind of strange how they didn't finish this backdrop before the start of the festival.

"Oh, well..." Ash rubbed his nose with his index finger. "You can finish it for me, right Serena? The show for today is going to begin soon, and I think it would be better for me to help Dawn with the stage."

"I guess..." Serena sighed, not liking how much Ash was giving his old friend all of his attention.

"Thanks! You're the best!" The raven haired trainer grabbed a hammer and scurried towards the Coordinator who was already securing the boards with a few other helpers.

Serena sighed, dipping a smaller brush into the yellow paint. "Ash and Dawn sure are close." She said to Bonnie who was busily painting a few trees on the opposite side of the canvas.

"Yeah," agreed the young blonde. "I hope I could find a close friend like that one day. It would be so much fun!"

"Yeah..." Serena sighed, dropping her brush into the tub of red paint.

"Are you okay?" Bonnie asked, setting her own brush in the right bucket of paint. She leaned in close to Serena who had her head down. As much as wanted to share her sadness, she couldn't help but smirk. "Are you jealous?" She asked.

"Wh-What?" Serena stammered, reaching for a clean brush to continue with her task. "Maybe a little..." She sighed.

"You are jealous!? This is great!" Bonnie began jumping on the spot.

The honey blonde crossed her arms, "Why is that great?!"

"Because this whole time I've only been witnessing Ash be jealous. Now you're the one whose jealous! Miette and Shauna would love to hear about this!"

"Bonnie!" Serena yelled out her name in anger.

"I'm sorry." She apologized, "You have nothing to worry about. I know Ash likes you. He just hasn't seen his friend in awhile."

"I know. I just can't help the way I feel." The honey blonde turned her head to look at the old friends, diligently putting the stage together.

As the two neared the center of the stage, Serena watched as Ash turned his head to look at Dawn who was hammering away at the floorboards.

"Wow Dawn, you're still a dirty person, huh?" Ash said before reaching out to a smudge of dirt that the bluenette got on her face.

Dawn smacked his hand away as soon as his finger came into contact with her skin. "You could just tell me! Your hands are dirty! You're just going to make it worse."

"Sorry!" He reached into his pocket, grabbing the handkerchief Serena returned to him when they first started their journey together. "You can use this."

Serena clenched her fist in anger, breaking the thin paintbrush in half. Even if that handkerchief meant nothing to him, it meant a lot to her. She thought that since her and Ash confessed their feelings to one another, maybe the handkerchief had some meaning to him now. She supposed she guessed wrong.

"Or maybe you do have something to worry about..." whispered Bonnie who witnessed what just happened.

"I think I'm gonna go." Serena said, biting her bottom lip.

"Are you sure?" Bonnie could tell that the honey blonde wanted to cry.

"Yeah." She took a deep breath, holding back her tears. "Dawn asked me to perform tonight anyways. I should practice."

Serena dropped the broken brush onto the ground, and headed towards the table where her belongings laid.

"Hey Togepi," she said to the egg like Pokemon who stood on top of the table with Pikachu beside it. "I'm going to make a performance tonight. Would you like to be a part of it?"

"Toge Togepri!" It yelped in excitement.

"I take that as a yes." Serena smiled before looking over at Pikachu. "Did you want to be apart of it too Pikachu?"

"Pi Pikachu!"

"That's great! Let's go find a place to put a performance together!"

* * *

"And that's how you decorate your own brooch!" Dawn said before fastening the pin onto Bonnie's yellow pouch.

Bonnie eyed the beads that Dawn glued down to the pin that was once plain. Even if the gems weren't real, the beads certainly made it seem like it was. "Wow! It's so pretty! Can I decorate my own now?"

"Yeah of course! Maybe you can make some extras and sell them too."

"Thanks Dawn, you're the best!" Bonnie said before turning her body to face her big brother. "I'm gonna make one for you Clemont! You should make one for me too!"

"That's a good idea Bonnie," said Clemont who was already eying the different kinds of beads laid about the table.

Suddenly a click was heard from his pocket, and the familiar grass type Pokemon released itself from its Pokeball. "Chespin Ches!" Chespin pointed over to the table, showing that it wanted to help with making a decorative pin.

"Do you want to help me make one for Clemont?" Bonnie asked as the grass type Pokemon jumped onto the picnic table.

"Chespin!" It nodded its head.

Ash, who stood at the opening of the crafting tent stared out into the field that was filled with unfamiliar faces. He sighed after noticing that the honey blonde was nowhere in sight.

"Hey Ash," Dawn called out, walking over to him. "Did you want to make a brooch?"

"I don't know," he replied. "Serena would love to make one. I think I should wait for her. I can't believe she didn't tell me that she was going to work on her performance. I could have gone with her to help."

"I guess it was my fault I asked a person I barely know to take part in something a few hours before it starts. At least she has Pikachu with her."

"No. Serena loves performing. If anything she would rather perform on the stage tonight rather than decorating some pins."

"You must really like her, huh?" A mischievous grin formed on the bluenette's face. "I never thought I would live to see the day where Ash Ketchum finally has a crush on a girl." She giggled, amused by Ash's shy side. "So did you tell her how you feel? If not, you can make a brooch for her and tell her tonight."

"Actually," Ash began, rubbing his nape. "She confessed her feelings to me a couple weeks ago, and I told her I felt the same."

"WHAT?!" Dawn gasped. "And I wasn't here to witness any of this?! So are you guys dating now? Ash has a girlfriend? This is so great! I can't wait to tell May, and Brock, and everyone else!"

"Err... I don't think she's my girlfriend..."

"What are you talking about? You confessed your feelings to one another. That should make you boyfriend and girlfriend right?"

"I don't know! I'm new to all this!" Ash's tone rose, causing the few people in the tent to stare at him. He cleared his voice before looking ahead at Dawn. "It's never been said, really. I think we just like each other and that's it."

"Wow Ash..." Dawn sighed before leaning against a table, a guilty look forming on her face. "She might have left earlier because of me."

"Why would she do that?"

"Maybe she was feeling a little jealous. You were giving me a lot of attention."

"But I haven't seen you for awhile. I would give Brock the same amount of attention. Serena would understand."

"She would, but when you like someone, sometimes you can't help the way you feel."

"Then she should have said something!"

"Oh Ash." Dawn placed a hand on his shoulder. "There are still so many things you have to learn about girls and relationships."

* * *

The honey blonde trod through the field, the tips of the tall pieces of grass brushing up against her stockings. She walked with a crestfallen look on her face, staring down at the ground beneath her. She just couldn't come up with any ideas for a routine.

"Pika Pika?" Pikachu walked along Serena, noticing her sadness. "Pikachu?"

"I'm okay Pikachu. I'm just a bit sad cause I can't think of any kind of routine. I should have listened earlier and said no." She groaned loudly before kicking the dirt in front of her.

"Whoa," a voice sounded. "Ash travels with weirdos."

Serena frantically turned her head from side to side until she noticed Paul standing beside the entrance of a greenhouse.

"Paul, is it?" Serena asked, walking over to the purple haired boy. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be running the booth with Dawn?"

"Shouldn't you be with Ash and your other friends?" He asked, before heading into the greenhouse.

With curiousity, the honey blonde followed the boy into the tent, her eyes widening at the sight of Sunflora nicely aligned around the edges.

"These Sunflora are yours?" She reached to touch the petal of one of the flower like Pokemon who was swaying back and forth on the spot.

"Yeah," he replied. "I'm watching them for my grandmother back home. She wanted them to take part in the festival in some kind of way. They're kind of startled right now. Some explosion scared them earlier."

"You don't say," Serena replied nervously. Her mind wandered to the thought of Clemont's Miniature ClemBot and how it startled a bunch of Sunflora. These must have been the Sunflora from during lunch time.

Serena stared at the dozens of Sunflora who were happily thriving together in the tent. "Do you think they would like to perform with me?" She asked, an idea forming in her head.

Paul simply stared at her, confusion taking over his face.

"I'm a Pokemon Performer, and Dawn asked me to perform for the show happening in a few hours. Do you think they would like to perform with me?"

"That would certainly make my grandmother happy. I had no idea as to what I was going to do with them, to be honest. Knock yourself out. They do need more time in the sun."

"Thanks so much Paul! You won't regret it!"

* * *

"Our next Performer for the evening is a young and talented Pokemon Performer who resides here in Kalos. Please welcome Serena!"

The crowd that gathered around the stage, clapped as the honey blonde walked underneath the spotlight, wearing a yellow sundress. She curtsied in front of the crowd as Togepi and Pikachu followed after her, both wearing yellow ribbons, tied around their wrists.

"She looks so adorable in that dress," said Dawn before turning her head to look at Paul who had a camera in his hand. "Doesn't that yellow dress belong to you grandmother?"

Paul shrugged. "What of it? My grandmother asked for her Sunflora to take part in the festival, and Serena waltzed into the greenhouse and asked if they could perform with her."

"So you helped her out?"

"I guess."

"I knew there was a sweet side to you." Dawn winked before slithering an arm around his neck, and resting it on his shoulder. "Go Serena!" She cheered.

Ash smiled to himself as he watched Serena take the stage. He hasn't seen her perform in awhile and he was looking forward to it. He never realized how beautiful she looked as a Performer. Watching her ready herself on the stage made him realize that Serena looked even better doing something that she loved.

* * *

"Alright, now this is just for fun." She glanced to her left at Pikachu and then to her right at Togepi while maintaining her stance. "Just have fun okay?"

"Pikachu!"

"Togeprii!"

As the music started, Serena began to dance along to the beat of the song with Pikachu and Togepi dancing along with her.

"Alright Pikachu, use Electro Ball!" Serena commanded.

With Serena's help, the electric Pokemon jumped high above her head. "Pika Pika Pika, Chu Pi!" The electric Pokemon released an energy filled orb up into the air.

"And Togepi use Charm!" Serena twirled before lifting Togepi from the ground. She held the egg like Pokemon above her head as it released a swirl of hearts above it, colliding with Pikachu's attack.

The Electro Ball exploded into a million tiny orbs of electrical impulses that danced around the hearts that were capturing the hearts of the crowd.

Serena continued dancing along with the two before dancing her way to the curtains, allowing the Sunflora to enter the stage.

The group of Sunflora danced into two separate lines, their petals looking much vibrant now that they were under the hot summer sun.

"Sunflora flora!" They all sang in sync before Serena commanded half of them to use Razor Leaf, and the other half to use Solar Beam.

As a swirl of leaves circled the group on the stage, the Solar Beam charged itself before the leaves scattered amongst the area. The determined Performer once again instructed Pikachu and Togepi to use the attacks they used before. With the flash of the Solar Beam, the attacks collided with one another, creating a rainbow of fireworks up into the sky.

The honey blonde then danced in sync with the Pokemon before the song finally came to an end.

* * *

"That was great, Serena!" Dawn rushed towards the honey blonde who just exited the stage. "You should teach me some of those moves!"

"You think it was good?" Serena asked shyly, "The fireworks would have looked a lot better during the night."

"It still looked great to me!" Bonnie chimed in. "You're getting much more creative with your performances, Serena."

"Nenene!"

The honey blonde took a few steps forward, stopping in front of Paul. "Thanks for letting me borrow your Sunflora. I hope you took a lot of pictures."

"Yeah, thanks. My grandmother will be pleased."

Serena smiled at the boy before noticing Ash who was staring right at her. Still feeling a bit hurt from before, the honey blonde was quick to look away. "I'll go change. I don't want this dress to get dirty since it belongs to your grandmother."

"Thanks Serena, you're not too bad."

"Aren't you just sweet?" Dawn giggled, looking at Paul whose cheeks had a slight tint of pink to it "Don't tell me you're falling for Serena?" She teased.

"Get over yourself, Dawn."

Ash muted the voices around him as he watched Serena thank the Sunflora for their help. His eyes followed as she disappeared behind the curtains. He knew how it felt to be jealous, and it was one of the worst feelings in the world. He had to do something about it.

* * *

"Serena? Are you here?" Ash pushed aside the flap of the tent to see Serena sitting at the crafting table, making her own brooch. "I've been looking everywhere for you. Are you not hungry? Dawn got us some free food."

"Oh," Serena replied, her eyes focused on gluing down the bead on the right spot. "I almost forgot about dinner. Bonnie told me that we can make our own brooch, and I want to make my own before the end of the festival."

"If you'd like, I can bring you some food."

"It's okay." Serena looked over at the beads, trying to pick out another color she should add to the pin to complete her brooch. "I'm almost done."

"Then I'll just wait for you."

"You don't have too. Wouldn't you want to spend more time with Dawn before we go separate ways?"

"Serena..." Ash sighed before walking over to her table, sitting next to her. "Dawn is a great friend and all, but I'd rather be with you. You disappeared when we were fixing the stage without saying a word, and I really wanted to watch you make your routine."

"What?" Serena's cheeks turned a deep shade of crimson.

"I'm sorry that I paid more attention to her. I should have thought about your feelings, but I didn't, so... I want to make it up to you."

"You don't have to Ash. I shouldn't have gotten jealous, but I did." She bit her lip before reaching for the blue ribbon on her dress.

Ash eyed her fingers as they interlaced around the silky material. "Do you have any of that blue ribbon left?" He asked.

Serena blinked her eyes in confusion. "Yeah, why? There's some left in my bag."

"Can I have it?"

"Sure," Serena reached for her bag, rummaging through her belongings for the roll of ribbon. As she took it out, Ash grabbed it from her grasp and cut a long piece with the scissors that were lying on the table.

"What are you doing?" She asked as she watched the raven haired trainer bring the piece of ribbon close to the zipper that was attached to his jacket. She watched as he threaded the material through the small hole, before tying it into a knot, and securing it in place.

"I just want you to know that I'm yours, and that hopefully you're mine, and that these ribbons are a token of our relationship." He leaned in close, kissing Serena on the forehead.

"Oh.. Kay." She mumbled shyly as they shared the same look from the morning.

Without having to say a word, the two closed their eyes, kissing each other on the lips.

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **The Haunting at Santalune City:** Dawn is now temporarily traveling with the group as they head towards the Pokemon League. The group stop by Santulune City where they come across "The Haunted Mansion", a new scary story that has somehow been formed during their adventures around Kalos. Bonnie and Dawn convince the others to check out the house at night to see if the ghost story is actually true.

* * *

 **A/N:** Aside from the story, have you guys downloaded Pokemon Go? What team are you guys on? haha. My neighbourhood is only surrounded by Drowzees. :(


	15. The Haunting at Santalune City

**Hey guys! I know it's been over a month. Long story short, I got sick, then went traveling, then forgot what I was even going to write so I put it off. haha sorry about that. I actually had to re read a few things because I couldn't remember what was going on. Anywho, I hope you guys haven't forgot about the story :) I was originally going to upload on Sunday, but you guys have been waiting so long!**

 **TO: DoodleRose & Nexxuss176: **Thanks for the slight push and asking for me to Update. haha It doesn't really seem like that would do much, but it really did. I haven't forgotten about the story.

 **Also, thank you to the rest who have left a review for the last chapter (ChaosLuu, Red G, blizzard21, PunishedEagle88, Guest, FantasyLover88, espeon44, 49ers, MANbearPIG01) . You guys are great.**

* * *

 **Summary:** Dawn is now temporarily traveling with the group as they head towards the Pokemon League. The group stop by Santulune City where they come across "The Haunted Mansion", a new scary story that has somehow been formed during their adventures around Kalos. Bonnie and Dawn convince the others to check out the house at night to see if the ghost story is actually true.

* * *

 **EP 15: The Haunting at Santalune City**

 _It hasn't been long since our four traveling companions have met Ash's long time friend from Sinnoh. With Dawn added to the group, the fearsome five finally reach Santalune City, tuckered out, and ready to head towards the Pokemon Center._

The five friends continued their walk along the cemented pavements of Santalune City. The leaves of the oak trees around them rustled about in the wind. Standing at the front of the bunch was Bonnie who was excitedly taking in the sights of the buildings and townspeople around her. Behind her was Ash and Clemont (along with Pikachu and Togepi), familiarizing themselves with the town they haven't been to in such a long while. The town where Ash received his first badge. He hasn't realized that it's been that long. He surely has grown as a trainer since then.

Walking at a much slower pace than the rest were the two girls, Serena and Dawn. Dawn temporarily ventured away from her fellow Coordinators to complete her own Kalos goal of seeing Valerie's fashions up close. With Serena's help, Dawn was set to meet Cilan at Snowbelle city to set her goal in motion. As for the time being, she was traveling with Ash and the others, and getting her own taste of Kalos.

Serena's jealousy towards the bluenette was quick to vanish as she realized how much she had in common with the aspiring coordinator. Instead of spending her time walking along Ash on their journey, she's been walking alongside Dawn, exchanging stories and experiences of their time on stage. The two were quick to become best friends, and Serena wished that they didn't have to depart ways in the end.

"I'm pretty hungry," said Ash, rubbing his grumbling belly. "Maybe we should have taken that snack break earlier."

"I was pretty surprised that you turned down that offer. Since when does Ash turn down food?" Dawn giggled, causing the others to join in her fit.

"Man, I guess I was just excited. We're almost there." Ash rubbed his nape. He was one step closer to accomplishing his dream.

"Pika, Pikachu." His electric buddy smiled at him.

"The Pokemon Center is still a ten minute walk from here," said Serena who pulled out her handheld device to make sure that they were heading in the right direction. "Once we get there, we can have some lunch."

"I can't wait!" Ash pumped his fist. "Then I can resume my special training!"

"Pikachu!"

"And I can start training for when the Showcases start up again," said Serena whose excitement began to grow because of Ash's infectious amount of energy.

"AHHHHH!" A shrilling scream filled the ears of the five passing companions.

Everyone raised their hands to their ears as a few more screams followed the first. They frantically began darting their eyes around the area, looking for the location of such a terrifying call.

Serena's eyes fell upon four other kids, around the same age as her and the others, bolting out of a house next to them, and cutting through the nicely mowed grass.

"It's true what they say! There's a ghost living in there." A boy huffed before tripping, and falling over a lawn ornament. Too frightened to pick up the ornament, the boy continued his run the second his feet were back on the ground.

"A ghost?" Bonnie asked. "What ghost?"

"Nene?"

"The ghost of Professor Langley!" The boy replied in a trembling voice as he jogged on the spot to talk to the passing companions.

"Whose Professor Langley?"

"He's the ghost haunting that-" The boy trailed off, his eyes widening as he looked past the five who were staring at him. "Just run!" His voice cracked before resuming his speed down the street.

The fivesome watched as the four younglings continued their run, unwilling to stop even if they already escaped the so called terrifying thing that was chasing after them.

"That's kind of weird..." Dawn said, turning her head to look for whatever the boy was looking at. "It looked like he saw something that scared him."

"Maybe he angered the ghost, and he saw it one last time," said Serena with trembling knees. "Angry ghosts won't stop until they get rid of those they don't like!"

"I hope not!" Clemont jumped as a slight burst of air rubbed against his nape.

"Nah, maybe they are just playing around," said Ash. "We shouldn't assume anything just yet."

* * *

"Here," said Serena as she scraped half of her rice onto Ash's plate. "I know how hungry you get, especially when you're about to train."

"Thanks, Serena..." Ash replied in a shy tone with a slight tint of pink to his cheeks "You didn't have to do that though."

"I just want you to have enough energy for when you train."

"Aren't you two just the cutest?" Dawn admired, sitting across from the newly formed couple.

"Wha-What?" Serena retreated further into her seat. "I just thought that Ash could use the extra energy. You know how much he eats."

Dawn giggled. "I don't get why you guys are still so shy about it. It's natural."

"Bonnie!" Clemont groaned, as he chased his sister around the Pokemon Center. "Finish your food! We don't have the time to get caught up in Officer Jenny's affairs! That's police business!"

"But I want to go to the haunted house!" Bonnie pouted before heading over to the trio who was enjoying their meals. Bonnie waved a piece of parchment in front of their faces, capturing their attention.

"What is that?" Asked Dawn.

"It's information on Professor Langley," she responded.

"Where did you get that?" Ash asked through a mouthful of stew.

"I found it on the bulletin board."

Serena grabbed onto the piece of parchment as she took a bite of her apple. She placed the piece of paper between all of the dishes on the table, and her eyes focused on the words on the paper. It looked to be a photocopy of an article that was dated just a few weeks ago.

 _Local Haunting! : The Haunted Mansion!_

 _Professor Langley, Head of the Archeology Department here in Santalune City has passed away just a week ago. Anyone passing by his house, including those who were sent to collect his belongings have reported that they've seen the ghost of Professor Langley floating through his house. Is this true?_

 _It is rumored that the now deceased researcher owns a dozen artifacts that are worth a fortune. Is it possible that he's haunting his own place to prevent people from taking his artifacts? Could it be a bunch of hoodlums playing a prank, or could it just be a bunch of ghost type Pokemon?_

 _Officer Jenny and her team are currently too busy to check out the house. What do YOU think it could be?_

Serena finished reading the short article before looking up to see that the others were close to reading the rest of the article themselves.

"I think it's a bunch of ghost type Pokemon," said Dawn. "It's the only thing that makes sense."

"But what if it isn't? Bonnie asked, making the others think.

"Bonnie! Don't ask such things!" Clemont said, vexed. He was already angry by Bonnie's need to know about the kids running out of the house they passed by earlier. Knowing his sister, she knew what she wanted to do, and he dreaded it very much.

"I guess there could be a real ghost," said Dawn. "Why don't we check it out later tonight?"

"Really?" Bonnie's eyes sparkled. She was ecstatic to hear that someone suggested the very thing that she wanted to do. "Ash? Serena?"

Ash rubbed his cheek with his forefinger. "We would be helping Officer Jenny."

"Pika Pika"

"Even if I said no, you would still drag me into doing it..." Serena said.

"Toge Toge!"

"Woohoo! We get to go ghost hunting!" Bonnie jumped up in the air in excitement.

"Nenene!"

* * *

"Do you see that?" Jessie pointed to the words 'artifacts that are worth a fortune' on the article that she grabbed after eavesdropping on the heroines. "If we can grab those artifacts, we can be rich!"

"But Jessie..." James began as a bead of sweat began to trickle from his forehead. "The article clearly states that the place is haunted... Do you really want to go in there?"

"Of course! Don't you want to be rich!?"

The periwinkle haired teammate turned his head to look at Meowth who was also contemplating whether or not they should risks their lives to go into the house.

"Look you whining fools..." The redhead made a fist as her eyebrow twitched with disappointment. "Those twerps are going in there tonight! All we need to do is be quiet, and the ghosts will only pay attention to them!"

"I suppose that could work..." Said Meowth.

"Of course it will! Just trust me!"

* * *

Muted behind a cluster of clouds was the full moon. The calls of the nocturnal Pokemon could be heard in the forests surrounding Santalune City. Serena, along with the others crept over the steps that led to Professor Langley's front door.

Serena could feel her heart pounding as if it was trying to escape her body. The constant thud that created a slight vibration in her body rang through her ears, making her feel as if her rapidly beating heart was waking anything sleeping in the neighborhood. She never really thought that her or the others were the type to break an entering.

Earlier in the Pokemon Center, they've come across at least a dozen individuals who told them of their encounters to this house. That didn't really justify what they were planning to do, but she supposed that doing it to help Officer Jenny was enough for it to be okay.

The stairs creaked as the fivesome tiptoed onto the deck with Dawn and Bonnie at the front of the bunch. Dawn, who held a flashlight, used her free hand to jiggle the doorknob.

"It's locked," said Dawn with a frown, "Everyone said that it would be open."

"Oh well..." Clemont said through jittering teeth. "I guess we can't get into the house." He turned on his heel, ready to walk down the set of stairs.

"Not so fast big brother!" Bonnie scowled before grabbing onto her brother's sleeve.

Suddenly, a gust of cold air swirled around the fivesome, followed by the sound of a click. The door in front of them slowly creaked open, making each one of them wonder if it was the works of a ghost.

"That was the wind..." Clemont blinked, trying to convince himself with a scientific explanation.

Serena gulped. "Or it was the ghost welcoming us into the house. Some ghosts do that to lure their victims into their homes." She suddenly felt relieved that Togepi was left behind at the Pokemon Center with Pikachu, Dedenne, and Piplup.

Serena could feel her fingertips get cold with fear. She raised her hand to stop them from trembling, but was stopped by Ash who grabbed ahold of her hand.

"Huh?" Serena blinked before turning her head to look at Ash. The raven haired trainer squeezed her hand before giving her a lopsided smile. He then led Serena into the house behind the others who were already examining all of the items in what seemed to be the foyer.

"The lights don't work," said Dawn who was constantly flipping the light switches from on to off. "It's a good thing we all have flashlights."

Serena grabbed onto her own flashlight that was sticking out of the cardigan of her pocket. She clicked the on button and her eyes fell upon an image of what seemed to be Professor Langley with an Espurr. She moved her flashlight along the wall to see at least a dozen pictures of Professor Langley with other Pokemon, along with his Espurr.

"I wonder what happened to his Espurr," said Ash. "Do you think it left after Professor Langley died?"

"I don't think so," Clemont answered as they all shone their flashlights at the dozen portraits. "It would most likely stay behind. Any Pokemon whose attached to their owner would stay where their owner raised them."

"So you think it's still in the house?"

"It could be," said Dawn. "Maybe it's the one behind the scarings in the house."

"Look at this you guys!" Bonnie said, gesturing for the others to come towards the end of the foyer.

Everyone walked over to where Bonnie was and immediately shined their own lights at the giant portrait that took up one side of the room. It was a picture of Professor Langley at an excavation site with his Espurr, a Gengar, an Alakazam, and a Mawile.

"That's cool," said Ash. "I wonder what they found."

 _Crrrrrr Grrrrrr..._ The floorboards beneath the bunch began to move.

"What's going on? Where's that coming from?" Serena asked as she backed away, her light profusely moving about the floor, trying to find what was happening.

Suddenly, the honey blonde could feel her left foot backing into complete nothingness. Losing her balance, the girl fell backwards, flailing her arms out in the progress.

"AHHHH!" Serena screamed as she could feel herself endlessly falling.

"SERENA!" Ash called out, before throwing himself into the opened hole in the ground.

"ASH!" Clemont cried out as Dawn and Bonnie rushed over to where the two have fallen.

Bonnie and Dawn looked at each other with determined looks on their faces, ready to follow the others.

"Let's go!" Said Dawn before jumping over the hole. In a quick second, the floorboards beneath them moved in a swift motion, causing Dawn's heroic act to be unseen. "Oh no!" She stomped on the floorboards. "What just happened?! ASH! SERENA!"

The trio began shouting out the names of the two who have fallen through the trapdoor. Dawn got on her knees, and pressed her ears against the floorboards, trying to hear for Ash's and Serena's scream. "I don't hear anything anymore. They must have landed."

"I hope they are okay." Bonnie pouted, feeling a bit guilty for making them go to the house.

Clemont sighed before placing a hand on his sister's shoulder. "They will be fine. It's Ash and Serena. They are strong, and they have each others company. They are probably in some other part of the house. Let's go search for them."

* * *

"Serena!" The honey blonde could hear the raven haired trainer call for her in the dark.

"Ash?" Serena felt the floor around her in search of the flashlight that she dropped while falling. She could feel some discomfort coming from her ankle as she attempted to pull her weight from off the ground. "Oww..." She groaned before placing her hand on the area that was emanating a sharp pain.

"Are you okay?" Ash asked, shining his own flashlight on the honey blonde who was sitting at the corner of the room.

Serena bit her bottom lip as she pressed her fingers against her ankle. "I think I sprained my ankle," she said. "It hurts to stand up."

With worry in his eyes Ash rushed over to the young performer to give her his aid. He propped his flashlight against a few boxes and barrels and kept the light shining on Serena's ankle. He gently tugged on Serena's boot, removing it in the process to examine her injury. Serena winced in pain as she rolled her stocking downwards.

"It looks pretty swollen," said Ash. "I think you did sprain it. It must have happened when you fell. Who would even put a trapdoor there?!" His voice grew with anger.

Serena pouted before reaching for her stocking to pull it back over her leg. Before she could lay a finger on her tights, the raven haired trainer grabbed her hand. "You can't just leave it alone Serena. We have to take care of it right away. I don't want it getting worse."

"But, Ash... We don't even know where we are, and we have to find the others."

"I don't care about that, Serena!"

The sudden outburst caught Serena by surprise. Ash has worried about her in the past, but she's never experienced it like this. "Ash... I"

The raven haired trainer grabbed onto the flashlight before shining it all around the room for something that could help with Serena's injury. They were in a quaint storage room that seemed to hold all of Professor Langley's excavation tools.

Serena watched as Ash began sliding a couple of crates from the corner of the room. He then walked back to Serena and draped her arm around his neck as he pulled her weight from off the dusty floor, and carried her over to one of the crates. He sat on the crate across from her and gently lifted her injured ankle and placed it on his lap. She continued to watch as Ash reached into his pocket, pulling out the handkerchief that he's given to her when she was previously injured at Professor Oak's Summer Camp. With caution, Ash lifted her ankle to wrap the handkerchief around it.

"Maybe if I didn't agree to come here..." Ash mumbled as he began securing the handkerchief.

"Ash," Serena interrupted. "You're drawn to adventure, and you love to help others. It's who you are." She paused for a second, her cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink at the thought of what she wanted to say next. "It's one of the reasons as to why I like you so much."

Ash chuckled before rubbing his nape. "You really have changed since you injured your ankle back at camp."

"Don't give up till its over, right?" Serena smiled, wiping off the saddened look on Ash's face.

"Right." He smiled back.

"Now, let's get out of here and find the others."

* * *

Clemont, Bonnie, and Dawn turned a corner, scuttling down another set of stairs. After Serena and Ash have fallen through a trap door located in the lobby, the three have been keen on trying to find them.

"This. Place. Is. Huge." Clemont huffed as the others started getting too far ahead of him.

"Hurry up big brother!" Bonnie yelled out. "We don't want to lose you either!"

Dawn, who was ahead of the two siblings came to a stop in the middle of the hallway. She exhaled loudly before wiping away the thin layer of sweat that was gathering at her forehead. "We've been running around this house for at least ten minutes. This house is much bigger than what it looks like from the outside."

"I guess that's why they were calling it 'The Haunted Mansion'," Bonnie pointed out, putting emphasis on the word mansion.

"Clemont," Dawn looked towards the older sibling who finally caught up. "Don't you have some kind of invention that could help us with locating the others?"

"Well," Clemont pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, his lenses illuminating a blinding light. He had his newly improved Fletchling Aroma Finder buried beneath his tools and other inventions in his knapsack. It was the same invention he used a few months back when Serena went on a date with a boy named Daniel. "I'm going to need something that belongs to Ash or Serena," he said but received no response from the two girls who stood in front of him. "Dawn? Bonnie?"

"Clemont!" Bonnie said in a hushed tone before pointing straight ahead of her.

"Wha- What is it Bo-" Clemont trailed off as he noticed the floating figure at the end of the hall. He squinted his eyes to get a better look at the figure in front of him. A chill traveled down his spine as he made out the facial features of the ghost that was levitating just a few meters away from them. It was the ghost of Professor Langley.

The trio stood in place, waiting for the ghost of the archaeologist to make some sort of move. The figure continued to hover above the ground, expressionless, as if it was waiting to see what the three were going to do.

Bonnie cleared her throat before taking a step forward.

"Bonnie!" Clemont scolded. "Stay away from it! It can hurt you!"

"Relax big brother," said Bonnie before returning her attention to the ghost in front of her. "You must be the ghost of Professor Langley! My friends and I have come to this house to put your soul to rest. We would like to help you in anyway possible, but we need to find our other friends first. Have you seen them?"

The figure in front of them let out a quiet groan before turning the other way, levitating away from the trio.

"What's it doing?" Dawn asked.

"I think it wants us to follow it," said Bonnie, already walking in the direction of the ghost.

"Bonnie!" Clemont called out with shaky knees.

"Relax, Clemont. If it wanted to hurt us, it would have already!"

* * *

"Ash! Serena!" Bonnie called out, noticing the two stumbling down the hall in front of her. "What's wrong?!" She asked with concern after noticing Serena limping and resting her body against Ash for support.

"Serena sprained her ankle." Ash grunted, his body getting sore from carrying Serena's weight.

With worry, Dawn and Clemont ran to Serena's side, and held her up for support. The raven haired trainer was quick to stretch his upper body before massaging the shoulder that Serena was leaning a little bit too much on.

"Are you okay, does it hurt too much?" Dawn asked, concerned.

"It's not too bad. Ash really helped with making sure that I wasn't walking on it too much." Serena smiled. "Did you guys find anything?"

"We found Professor Langley's ghost," answered Bonnie. "He disappeared into this room." Bonnie pointed to the room beside her that had a bright light peeking from beneath the doors.

"Let's check it out then," said Ash still giving his arms a stretch. "Then we can finally put a rest to this haunted house business."

Everyone looked to one another with determination. They each gave Bonnie a stern nod, signaling her to open the door in front of her. Bonnie reached for the doorknob, and gave it a twist. She opened the door, and was the first to drop her mouth in surprise.

The fivesome entered the brightly lit room to see a bunch of artifacts nicely arranged about the perimeter. With Serena hobbling along with Dawn's help, they each walked to separate parts of the room, examining the artifacts that were revealed before them.

"These must be from different civilizations that resided in Kalos hundreds of years ago," said Clemont who was examining a clay shaped bowl. "This is amazing."

"You got that right, big brother." Bonnie reached for one of the artifacts.

"Hey guys!" Ash called out from another side of the room. "Look at these." Everyone walked over to Ash, curious to see what kind of artifact he has found. Inside a glass casing were four rounded pearls, each with their own unique colors. "Are these..."

"Mega stones," said Clemont. "and a lot of them."

"I wonder which Pokemon these are for," said Bonnie.

"GENGAR!" An angry growl from the ghost type Pokemon could be heard from behind.

They each turned around, their eyes falling upon a Gengar with a look of disdain in its eyes. It lifted its hands and extended its arms, releasing a chain linked dark attack at the heroes.

"Duck!" Dawn yelled out as Ash pushed her aside to get to Serena.

"GENG GENGAR!" Gengar yelled out, furious, sending out another attack.

The five crawled behind the table and shelves that were arranged around the room, in hopes that it could shield them from the attacks to come.

"What do you want?!" Ash called out. "We did nothing wrong."

"GENGAR!"

"ESPURR!"

"GENGAR GENGAR GENG!"

"ESPURR PURR!"

"Huh?"

The five peeked their heads from behind the furniture to see an Espurr levitating above the ghost type Pokemon, using its psychic powers to prevent Gengar from unleashing anymore attacks. The heroes retreated from their hiding spots, and slowly walked towards the two Pokemon who were having an argument. They watched as Gengar's raised tone die down into a much more calming sound. It crossed its arms over its chest as Espurr gave it a nod, and released it from its psychic powers.

"You're the Espurr from all those pictures in the foyer!" Bonnie said with realization. "What's going on here? Are you two scaring off all those people?" She crossed her arms.

"I told you that it was going to be Pokemon," said Dawn, feeling rather proud of her proven hypothesis.

"Espurr Espurr Es." Espurr's body glowed with a pink aura before looking at the five in front of it. _"I am sorry for what's been happening. It wasn't meant to be this way."_ The Espurr continued to apologize while using its psychic abilities to get the five to understand.

 _"Professor Langley returned from an expedition just over a month ago, and brought back Gengar along with the four mega stones that you have found. He was to arrange a meeting with Professor Sycamore for his research with mega evolution, but died before he could call him."_

"That's so sad," said Serena.

 _"The same day he died,"_ Espurr continued. _"A few thieves broke into our home in search of valuable artifacts to sell. This angered Gengar, and he scared the thieves away, starting the rumor of 'The Haunted Mansion'. People started to come every night to see if the place was really haunted. It scared Gengar, and I because we didn't want anyone stealing the artifacts, or mega stones. I created the ghostly image of Professor Langley to scare you away, but then I heard you said that you wanted to help, so I led you here to explain what has happened, and receive your help."_

"You can trust us!" Said Ash. "We can call Professor Sycamore in the morning, and tell Professor Jenny to keep the artifacts and mega stones safe until his arrival."

 _"Thank you so much."_ Espurr finished off as its aura disappeared. "Espurr!" It smiled at the fivesome.

"GENGAR!" Gengar shrieked as it left the room by running through the walls.

"What's going on?" Ash asked as Espurr hovered about the case that contained the mega stones.

"Espurr! Esp!"

"Huh?" Ash ran to the case. "The mega stones are gone!"

"That's impossible! We were the only ones in the room! We should have seen the thieves!" Clemont stated.

"I think Gengar saw who took the mega stones. It went outside of the house," said Bonnie.

"Let's go!"

* * *

"Gengar!" Ash called out as he ran out into the yard. "What's happening?!"

"Gengar!" The ghost type Pokemon pointed ahead at the familiar Meowth balloon that was ascending from the ground.

"Team Rocket!?" Ash gritted through his teeth. "Not you again!"

"Prepare for trouble, we'll have the perfect mega evolution team!" Jessie began as she stared down at the heroes that were slowly coming into the yard.

"And make it double, this is our best scheme!" James continued.

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all peoples within our nation!"

"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"

"To extend our reach to the stars above!"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"

"Meowth that's right!"

"Wobbuffet!"

Ash reached for a pokeball on his utility belt, readying himself for a battle. "Give those back! Those aren't yours!"

"Finders keepers!" Jessie taunted, sticking her tongue out.

Ash made a fist as he furrowed his eyebrow with determination. He grabbed a Pokeball from his utility belt, and brought his arm backwards, ready to release his Greninja.

"Gengar Geng!" Gengar stood in front of Ash, determined to win back the mega stones without his help.

"Espurr Es!" Espurr nodded at Gengar, creating a mutual understanding.

"I think they want to win back the mega stones without our help, Ash," said Clemont.

Ash nodded before attaching his pokeball back to his belt. "Good luck you two!"

"Gourgeist!" Jessie called out, sending out her Pokemon. "Use Shadow Ball!"

"Gengar!" Gengar released its own Shadow Ball causing the two attacks to collide with one another.

"Inkay! Join the fray! Psybeam!" James commanded, and his squid like Pokemon happily obliged.

"Inkay!"

"Espurr!" Espurr used its psychic abilities to control the attack. Concentrating, it controlled Inkay's psybeam, and redirected it towards the Meowth balloon, creating a huge hole in the process.

"GAH," Jessie groaned, losing her balance. "Meowth do something!"

"Gengar!" Gengar sent a another Shadow Ball as Espurr sent a Psybeam towards Team Rocket.

"Oh no!" Team Rocket cried out in unison, as the attack hit them right on. A huge explosion broke out, sending the rocket members flying far across the horizon, leaving nothing but a twinkle in the sky.

"Alright!" Ash called out as Espurr used its psychic abilities to catch the falling mega stones. "You really are a strong Pokemon Espurr," Ash complimented before looking at Gengar. "You too Gengar! You two make a great team."

"Did you get it back?" Asked Serena who finally made it to the yard while holding onto Dawn for support.

"We sure did!"

* * *

"I should have looked into this right away," said Officer Jenny with an apologetic look on her face. "I was so busy with other cases, I forgot about Espurr."

"Espurr Es!" Espurr purred as Officer Jenny stroked its head.

"I will contact Professor Sycamore first thing tomorrow morning. For now, my officers will watch over Professor Langley's artifacts."

"That's great," Bonnie cheered. "I knew it was a great idea to go into that house!"

"Gengar!"

"Thank you so much, all of you. If you need anything, just ask. I cannot express how thankful I am for you to figure out what's been going on at Professor Langley's home," said Officer Jenny.

"No problem," said Ash before looking at Serena who was sitting at the curb with one of Officer Jenny's medical assistants tending to her injury. He watched as the assistant finished off with bandaging her leg before walking over to her.

"How's your ankle?" Ash asked as he took a seat next to Serena on the curb. "I still wish it was me that got hurt, instead of you."

"It's okay, Ash," said Serena as she adjusted the ice pack that was placed on her sprained ankle. "At least I'm finished with the showcases. I wouldn't have been able to perform if this happened then." She sighed. "I just feel sad that I'll be holding you back with your journey to the league."

"Don't worry about that. We'll still make it. Don't give up till it's over, right?" Ash winked.

"Right." Serena smiled.

 _And so, the mystery behind 'The Haunted Mansion" has been solved. What other adventures await our heroes as they continue with their journey to the league?! Stay tuned to find out!_

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **The Eeveelution Squad:** The group has arrived at the Kalos League early and come across a performing group of girls called The Eeveelution Squad. The group is incomplete though as its missing a member with a Sylveon. They view Serena as the perfect fit with her Sylveon, but Serena is unable to perform due to her ankle. Feeling guilty about how she sprained her ankle, Ash volunteers to take her place, but things take a turn when the Eeveeulution Squad's leader has her eyes and heart set on Ash.

* * *

 **Note:** Have you guys watched the battle with Alain and Ash? I'm not sure if many of you guys stray from the dub. I'm kind of sad about the outcome. :( I still hope they touch upon Serena's crush or have her go to Alola. Anywho, hope you enjoyed the chapter! There wasn't that much amourshipping, or well it wasn't the very main focus. sorry.


	16. The Eeveelution Squad

**Note:** Hey guys! This chapter is pretty lengthy. I feel like this "one-shot" could have definitely been divided into a few chapters just cause it feels kind of rushed (to fit everything that I needed to write). Still, I hope you guys still enjoy the premise of it. I know I could have prolly spent more time on it, but well... tbh if I miss a deadline (I set for myself + plus something bad happened in the last couple days so...), I might not update it for months, so... haha

 **TO: WolfGirl & DoodleRose: **Thanks for visiting my profile! haha The love story one shot should be up after the completion of these "one shots", but we will see. :)

Anywho, thanks to everyone who reviewed! **(DeretArmourShippping, Q-A the Authoress [thanks for reading like everything in 2 days and leaving reviews haha], IadoreAMOUR, Skalona43, 3 Guests, MANbearPIG01, Tenzalucard123, Wolves22, 49ers, espeon44, FantasyLover88) :) You. da. bomb.**

* * *

 **Summary:** The group has arrived at the Kalos League early and come across a performing group of girls called The Eeveelution Squad. The group is incomplete though as its missing a member with a Sylveon. They view Serena as the perfect fit with her Sylveon, but Serena is unable to perform due to her ankle. Feeling guilty about how she sprained her ankle, Ash volunteers to take her place, but things take a turn when the Eeveeulution Squad's leader has her eyes and heart set on Ash.

* * *

 **EP 16: The Eeveelution Squad**

Thanks to their helpfulness in Santalune City, Officer Jenny has brought the five to their destination. Now at the Pokemon League, with a week to spare, the fivesome are currently found in a hotel lobby. As the boys wait in line to retrieve their key cards, the girls are found resting on a few cushioned sofas, relaxing.

"Alright everyone, come on out!" Serena yelled out loud before throwing her pokeballs in front of her to release her performing trio. "We're here at the League!" She told her Pokemon as soon as they began eying the place with wonderment.

"Sylveeon!" Sylveon spoke out in excitement before its eyes laid upon the bandages that were tightly wrapped around Serena's ankle. "Sylvee..." It mumbled in a melancholy tone.

With sorrowful expressions, her pokemon mumbled to one another with concern about her injury. They then gathered around Serena, who was sitting in a cushioned seat with her leg propped up on the coffee table.

"I'm okay you guys, really." Serena assured her pokemon with a heartwarming smile. "Ash and the others have been a huge help. I just need to rest, and it will heal perfectly." Her smile and calm demeanor relieved their worries, causing their expressions to brighten.

Serena reached over to Braxien, petting its side before reaching over to Pancham to do the same. As Serena reached over to Sylveon, the fairy type pokemon unwound its ribbons and gently wrapped it around the honey blonde's sprained ankle. It looked to Serena with its faint smile, and Serena could feel that her pokemon was making a wish for her injury to heal much faster.

"Thank you so much, Sylveon." Serena thanked the evolved Eevee before reaching over to its head, and petting it between its ears.

"Awhhh!" A voice squeaked. "You and your Sylveon are just so adorable!"

Serena, along with Dawn and Bonnie turned their attention to see a little girl around Bonnie's age standing in front of them. She had electric blonde hair that stopped just above her waist and piercing hazel colored eyes. She wore a bright yellow sundress with yellow knee high boots, and hanging around her neck was a white, stiff scarf with pointed ends. If anyone got too close to her accessory, it looked like it would prick anyone's eyes out.

As the young girl leaned over to inspect Serena's Sylveon, a Jolteon came from behind the girl and looked straight at Sylveon with friendly eyes.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you guys," the girl apologized. "My name is Leila. You can call me Lei for short, and this is my pokemon Jolteon!"

"Oh hi there," Serena greeted before examining Jolteon's mane. She was pretty impressed with how clean and shiny it looked. "My name is Serena, and this is my Sylveon, Pancham, and Braxien." Serena pointed to each of her pokemon before Bonnie and Dawn started off with their introductions.

"Lei!" Another called out.

Serena, Dawn, and Bonnie shifted their gaze upwards to see a few other girls standing at the reception desk. Serena's eyes widened as she stared at the girls who were walking their way with a tonne of luggages. There were six other girls aside from Lei, each with a different kind of eeveelution walking along beside them. All of the girls looked very much unique with fashionable outfits that matched the evolved eevee that was walking with them. Their hair was even dyed to match the colors of their pokemon partners.

Wooow. Serena thought to herself as the girls came to a stop in front of Lei. She found these girls rather gorgeous up close and was feeling slightly intimidated by them. Serena's eyes rested upon the tallest girl of the group who had long brown hair with green tips at the bottom. She looked to be a few years older than Lei and wore a tight fitting dress that transitioned from tan to brown near the hem of her outfit. Scattered along the bottom half of her dress was a bunch of intricately designed leaves, and Serena just knew that she was the owner of the Leafeon.

"You must take great care of your Sylveon," said the girl who owned the Leafeon.

"Huh?" Serena could feel a chill travelling up her spine. There was something about that girl that she found intimidating. Maybe it was the way she walked, or talked, or how poised she was on those bright green stilettos.

"Lei here is right. I haven't seen a good Sylveon... well ever," she chuckled. "My name is Alison." She proceeded to introduce that rest of the girls that were apart of the group.

Fira, the girl who owned the Flareon. Lyn, the girl who owned the Vaporeon. Angel, the girl who owned the Espeon. Lilith, the girl who owned the Umbreon. And Aurora, the girl who owned the Glaceon. They all looked to be between eight and fourteen years old, with Alison appearing to be the oldest.

Lyn, tucked a tress of her sapphire colored hair behind her ear before gasping out loud at the sight of Serena. " OH EM GEE! You're Serena! The performer who almost won the title of Kalos Queen against Aria! I knew that you looked familiar. Alison, doesn't that make things even better?!"

Ali chuckled. "I guess we're in luck."

"What are you guys talking about?" Bonnie asked in confusion.

"Hey guys, we got our room keys!" Ash called out, running to the girls with the key cards in his hand, Togepi in his other, and Pikachu perched up on his shoulder. Ash came to a stop in front of Serena, ready to reexamine her ankle, but was distracted by the amount of eeveelutions that were in the room. "Whoa," Ash said, stunned. "What's going on?" He asked as Clemont came to a stop behind him.

"We're the Eeveelution Squad," answered Lei. "We're a group of performers just like Serena, except we don't participate in Showcases. We travel around Kalos and perform shows on stages!"

Ali used the back of her hand to push her hair behind her shoulder. She then slightly pushed Lei to the side who was babbling on about their adventures on stage. "I'm Alison," she said in a flirtatious tone. "Who might you be?" She asked Ash who just took a seat next to Serena on the comfy couches.

"I'm Ash, from Kanto." He extended his arm to give her a handshake.

"Hi Ash." Alison took a seat beside Serena. It's like she forgot that everyone else around her was gone. "I was just about to ask Serena here if she would like to perform with us for the League Show happening at the end of the week. We've been looking for a Performer who owns a Sylveon for awhile, but we haven't come across a good one until we saw Serena's." Alison pouted.

Ash shifted his eyes to look at Serena. He gave her a lopsided smile before reaching out to squeeze her hand. "Serena's pretty great at taking care of her Pokemon."

"Ash..." Serena mumbled as her heart began to flutter.

"Well," Alison slightly glared at Serena who was having a moment with Ash. "It would be really nice if Serena could perform with us at the show!"

"That would be great, Serena would love that!" Ash said with a bright smile, and the others were quick to agree with his words.

Serena smiled, feeling happy to have the support from her friends. She then looked to her sprained ankle, and her smile was quick to fade into a frown. "I would love too, but I can't. I sprained my ankle just the other day."

"That just slipped my mind..." Ash replied in a sad tone.

Serena squeezed Ash's hand. Ash knew that she loved performing, and obviously just wanted her to be on the stage again. Even if she couldn't perform though, it would be great if her pokemon could.

"You can add my Sylveon to the show though, if you'd like." Serena offered before patting her Sylveon's head. "It hasn't performed in awhile and I'm sure that it would love too."

"Ohh," Alison pouted. "It would be really nice if your ankle wasn't sprained. Our performance calls for its owner too, but I guess that we can alter our routine to work with one less trainer."

Ash clenched his fist as he looked at Serena who was feigning a smile. "I can perform for her!" He blurted out.

Serena turned her head and looked at Ash in disbelief. "Ash, you don't have too," said Serena.

"But I want too," he said with determination. "Plus I get to experience what it's like to be a performer for once. I think it will be great! Don't you think so, Pikachu?" Ash looked over to his electric mouse pokemon.

"Pika~!"

"Really?" Alison said with a smug look on her face. "That would be great! Why don't you guys meet us tomorrow after lunch at the theatre. We have it booked for rehearsal."

"Great!"

* * *

 **~The Next Day~**

Bustling about the stage was the Eeveelution Squad, stretching their bodies to prepare themselves for their rehearsal. An upbeat tune could be heard in the background as Serena and the rest of her pokemon starred at the performers in complete awe. The way they warmed up with their pokemon was incredulous that Serena began to take mental notes in her mind. Her, and everyone else eyed the squad with dazzled eyes as they stopped with the warm ups and began performing flexible and acrobatic moves.

"Wow, I want to be able to do that!" Bonnie marveled, with her eyes set on Lei who just performed a splits without any issue.

"Eh?" Clemont was caught off guard from his sister's remark. Visions of his sister being a gymnast began to fill his mind. Imagining his sister perform such dangerous moves was tugging on his brotherly instincts. He certainly did not want to see her get hurt trying to learn such things. "Maybe when you're older, Bonnie." He managed to say.

"But Lei is the same age as me! I'll have dad enroll me in classes when we're back in Lumiose!" Bonnie snickered, clearly just teasing her brother. Clemont groaned before sharing his worries with his persistent sister.

"Wouldn't it be fun to learn some of those moves for your showcases?" Dawn asked Serena who was intently staring at Ash who was trying his best to follow the stretches that Alison was trying to teach him.

She watched Alison who was giggling at Ash's failure. Serena wasn't really sure, but she felt like Alison was showing interest in him. She always seemed to have a need to place her hand on his shoulder and twirl a tress of hair around her finger everytime Ash made a mistake. She would even bat her eyelashes whenever she would compliment him on successfully completing a move.

Serena shook her head before looking at Sylveon who was clearly having fun on the stage. She then looked over to Pancham and Braxien sitting beside her. They clearly wanted to be apart of the performance too. A faint smile formed upon the honey blonde's face as she watched Pancham and Braxien trying to imitate the moves of the squad. As long as her pokemon were having a great time, there was nothing that was going to stop her from having a great time as well.

"Yeah, it would be great." Serena agreed with a smile. "Maybe I can ask for some lessons after the rehearsals."

"Count me in!" Dawn said with a wink.

Alison grabbed onto the remote that was lying on a wooden stool at the edge of the stage. "Alright," She began as she turned off the music. "Since Ash is added to our performance, I have slightly altered our storyline."

The rest of the girls from the squad looked to one another in confusion. They clearly did not receive the memo that Alison was changing their routine.

"What do you mean?" Angel, the owner of the Espeon asked with a raised eyebrow.

Alison chuckled before gliding her fingers down the length of her hair. "Relax. It's nothing bad." She assured her team. "We initially were going to tell the story of how a group of princesses defeat the evil Eeveelution twins who own an Espeon and an Umbreon, and in the end they all become good friends... blah blah blah." Alison trailed off assuming that everyone understood the premise of the story. "Now that Ash is added to the group, I thought that we could make him a heartbroken prince who lost his love to the evil sisters. Then I, of course, will mend his broken heart, and we will live happily ever after." Alison finished off with an overwhelming amount of confidence. "We have a guy added to the group for once, we might as well add a bit of romance to it. I mean, we never really have the chance too."

 _What?_ Serena thought to herself. _Alison wants Ash to play his prince charming...?_

"That does sound more interesting," said Lei. "I think it would be fun to have a romantic interest involved." The squad looked to one another, exchanging words of agreement.

"Perfect! Do you mind, Ash?"

Ash blinked several times before rubbing his nape. "...It's fine with me... Whatever will help you with pulling off a great show."

"Great!" Alison grabbed Ash's hand. "Now let's teach you a few moves!"

 _Is Alison interested in Ash...?_

* * *

Serena stood at the edge of the balcony with the weight of her body pressed up against the glass divider. She looked off in the distance, staring at the world around her. She could see the stadium where Ash was going to battle, just a week from now.

They honey blonde sighed as she tucked a tress of hair behind her ear. She felt uncomfortable with how Alison was treating Ash during their first rehearsal. She barely paid attention to the other girls, and kept her focus on him. Ash was oblivious to the situation, but knowing him, he wasn't much to pay attention to those things especially when his eyes were set on nailing the performance.

"Serena?" Ash called, closing the balcony door behind him. "What are you doing out here? You should be inside, sitting down. I want your ankle to heal faster."

It was just like Ash to worry about her injury. "I just wanted to see the view from here, that's all." She replied with a smile, but not a very convincing one.

"What's wrong?" Ash asked, taking notice of her feigned smile. He walked over to her, and stood beside her.

"Ash, I-" She hesitated, but Ash insisted for her to continue. "I don't feel comfortable with you being Alison's love interest..." She admitted, looking down to the ground that was far below her.

"You don't have to worry about that, Serena. I don't like Alison, I like you." He assured, but it just wasn't convincing her.

She didn't like the idea of another girl trying to grab his attention. She trusted Ash with all her heart, but she didn't trust Alison. Her and Ash weren't very open about their relationship, but she thought it was obvious enough to everyone else.

"If you want, I can tell Alison that I can't do it." Ash said, placing a hand on Serena's shoulder. "They can add Dawn or Bonnie to the squad, and they can use their old routine."

Serena chewed on her bottom lip, staring at the small figures that were walking around the vicinity of the hotel. Lei and the others enjoyed Alison's new idea. Ash was learning to do something that she loved, and Sylveon had another chance to go up on the stage. She didn't want to ruin it for everyone.

"No," Serena shook her head before turning to look at Ash. "I want Sylveon to perform with the other eeveelutions. It's pretty awesome, and it might not have the chance to do that again."

Ash looked to Serena with a bright smile on his face. "Always thinking about others, huh?" He remarked before pulling Serena into a hug. "I promise, you have nothing to worry about."

* * *

 **~A Couple Days Later~**

Ash danced around the stage, practicing the fancy footwork that Alison's been engraving into his mind for the last few days.

The foursome sat in the same seats as the previous days, giggling as she watched Sylveon having to constantly unwind its ribbons to prevent Ash from falling on the stage. She almost forgot that Ash wasn't much of a dancer. She still found it very cute though.

"Sorry," Ash apologized, noticing the scowl on Alison's face. "I forgot to tell you that I'm not that much of a dancer." He chuckled before rubbing his nape in embarrassment.

"Oh it's okay," Alison batted her lashes. "We can work with it."

"Okay," Ash said before turning his attention to Serena. "Do you want to help out, Serena? You tried to help me dance before. Maybe you can help me again." He walked over to the wooden stool, gesturing for Serena to come up onto the stage.

Serena blushed as she watched Ash scurry off backstage, grabbing a shorter stool for her leg to rest on. "I can try my best," she giggled. "But it didn't work so much the last time."

"Maybe it will be different this time." He rushed down the set of stairs to help Serena onto the stage.

"Awehh that's so sweet!" Lei pointed out as she twirled over to pair, helping Ash to bring Serena to her chair. "Are you two boyfriend and girlfriend? You two seem like you are!"

Serena pursed her lips together, and her eyes widened at Lei's comment. Her heart began to thud as if it was trying to burst through her chest. Her and Ash have pronounced that they belonged to each other, but Serena couldn't wrap herself over the fact that it also meant that Ash was her boyfriend. It's never been said by either them, and hearing it from someone else made her feel like she was floating through a pool of puffy clouds.

"I..." Serena started, her mind frantically searching for a way to answer that question.

"Are you guys not?" Lei noticed the uncomfortable looks that were plastered on both of their faces. She giggled before slowly twirling away from the pair. "It still has to be sorted between the two of you I guess." She winked before twirling over to the rest of the girls who were already aware of the couples feelings towards one another.

Serena and Ash both looked to Angel who was whispering to Lei about how cute of a couple they are. One of them clearly put Lei up to the task of asking them if they were a couple.

"So..." Ash cleared his throat, looking at Serena's general direction. He was feeling a little bit too shy to look her in the eye. "Since you're Sylveon's owner, I want you to make sure that I'm working well with it." He kneeled down before stroking Sylveon's ear. Sylveon responded with glee before wrapping its ribbons around Ash's wrist.

"I think you two will work great together," said Serena. "It's just your dancing that we have to work out." She tried her best to keep her giggles to herself.

Alison marched over to the pair, clutching the remote in her hand. "Actually..." She said out loud as she turned off the music. "I was wondering If I could have some private time with Ash. We have a few scenes together, and I want to make sure that he's ready for them."

"I was thinking Serena could help me with those," Ash said. "She's a really great performer, and I trust that she'll have me ready by the end of the week."

"I'm sure she would," Alison crossed her arms over her chest, "But I was thinking that maybe Serena could go outside with the others and teach them some moves she knows. I think the others would appreciate that."

"That would be awesome!" Aurora, the owner of the Glaceon agreed as she turned her attention to Serena. "We can teach you some of our moves too!"

"I want to learn some moves!" Bonnie jumped up from her seat, but was quickly pulled down from the weight of her brother.

"Bonnie!" He scolded. "I don't think you want to learn something so dangerous!"

"It's okay big brother. Dawn will be there to help!"

"You bet I will!" Dawn winked, smiling at Clemont who responded with a groan.

"Well... I guess if that's better for the performance, then I wouldn't want to ruin it..." Serena responded with sadness before sneaking a glance at Ash who was feeling the same way.

"Great! We'll come back for tomorrow's rehearsal, and view our progress." Alison smiled with joy before grabbing on Ash's arm. She then looked back to Pikachu and Togepi who stood next to Serena on the stage. "Oh, and, only Sylveon can stay. I don't want Ash getting distracted by others who aren't even part of the scene."

"Pikachu," Pikachu said, angered with a surge of electricity sparking the red pouches on its cheeks. It was clearly not enjoying Alison's presence.

* * *

Serena shifted her attention to Pikachu who sat beside her in the grass. It had its arms crossed with a look of annoyance on its face. Togepi who sat next to it danced around the electric type pokemon, trying to cheer it up. Alison's been taking Ash away from it too, and it certainly didn't like it.

"It's okay, Pikachu." Serena whispered as she began petting Pikachu's tail. "He'll be ours again at the end of this." She knew that Pikachu was only keeping up with Alison's attitude because of Serena's wish to see her pokemon perform. For that, Serena was truly grateful.

"Pika..."

Serena smiled at Pikachu before returning her attention to Angel and Lilith's routine.

"So what do you guys think?" Angel asked out of breath with Lilith standing next to her. They were in their finishing pose with their Espeon and Umbreon standing in front of them.

Angel and Lilith were the antagonists of the performance, and just finished off showing Serena, Dawn, Bonnie, and Clemont their routine for when their characters captured the prince and his people.

"That was great..." Serena complimented, stunned. "I don't know why you guys want my help. I bet if you guys participated in the Master Class, you would all defeat Aria in a heartbeat."

Angel laughed. "We may be great on stage, but theres something about Aria that would blow us all away in an instant. She's such a great performer."

"She really is..." Serena mumbled to herself as she looked to the ground. Her past encounters with Aria began to replay through her mind. Aria was great, but next time, she was going to defeat her in the Master Class and become the next Kalos Queen. She needed to train harder for that to happen though.

Serena looked up as the squad began to replenish themselves with water. "Do you think you guys can teach me and my Pokemon some moves? It would really help me in the future."

"For sure! If you would like, we can add Pancham and Braxien to one of our performances. I can see that they are dying to have a go on the stage." Lei giggled as she looked at Serena's pokemon who were imitating the moves that they just witnessed. "If only you weren't injured..."

"That's fine with me," Serena replied, cheerfully. "I'm just as happy to see my pokemon perform again."

* * *

 **Meanwhile...**

Alison took a seat next to Ash who sat cross legged at the edge of the stage. She looked at him with admiring eyes as he fed Sylveon a treat from Serena's treat bag.

"You're doing an awesome job, Sylveon," he said. "You must be really happy when you're performing. I know I am when I'm battling."

Sylveon nuzzled up to Ash's shoulder before wrapping a ribbon around his wrist.

"You're really good at taking care of pokemon you know," Alison complimented. "You two have a really great bond."

Ash chuckled. "It's all Serena. She raised Sylveon to be the best, and to open up to others." The thought of Serena brought a tint of pink to his cheeks. "When Sylveon was just an Eevee, it was the shyest pokemon I've ever known. It would always hide behind her, and sometimes run away when it came across new people. Thanks to Serena, Sylveon was able to break out of its shy shell." Ash reached over to the blue ribbon that he tied to the zipper of his jacket. He found it a little amusing that he was doing something that Serena seemed to do all the time. He then just realized that it was something she always did when she was thinking about him. Thinking about how often she reached for that ribbon was making his cheeks turn a deeper shade of red.

"Are you okay, Ash?" Alison asked. "I just asked if you would want to review the scenes with just you and I together. If you mess up with a bunch of us on stage, the crowd won't notice as much, but when its just me and you... We really need to work on that."

"Ohh..." Ash shook his head, fiddling with the ribbon in his grasp. "Whatever you think is best. I just want to be able to make Serena feel better for not being able to perform. Maybe she'll feel happy to see me do something she loves!" He let go of the ribbon to a pump a fist up into the air.

"What is your relationship with Serena, and what's so important about that ribbon?" Alison asked with jealousy. She gripped her pencil a little too hard, causing it to almost snap in half.

Ash raised his index finger to his cheek, feeling rathey shy to answer her question. "Serena is just really important to me," he replied in a daze. "...and this ribbon is just to let her know that I'll always be there for her..." He couldn't bring himself to say 'always be hers'. It made him feel nervous, and still felt so foreign to him.

"Oh I see..." Alison clenched her fist before looking away to the costumes that were peeking just from behind the stage. "Why don't you try the jacket the girls and I sewed for you last night? It's going to be the costume you'll be wearing for your performance. You should probably rehearse with it on... I just want to make sure that it won't rip."

"Sure." Ash said before standing from the stage. He turned on his heel, ready to walk towards the rack that Alison was pointing at.

"You should remove your jacket, Ash." She giggled. "It won't feel comfortable if you wear that underneath."

"Oh," Ash blinked in confusion. "Okay." He unzipped his jacket before placing it at the edge of the stage next to Alison.

"You should go with him Sylveon. Your accessories are there too."

"Sylveoon!" Sylveon chimed with happiness. It was feeling ecstatic to be able to wear accessories once again.

Alison watched as Ash walked over to the clothing rack, searching for the costume that had his name on it. She then looked over to the blue ribbon that was tied to the zipper of his jacket. With anger, she reached over to the ribbon, untied it and stuffed into the pocket of her cardigan. She then grabbed onto one of the dozen green ribbons that were tied to her bracelet, and yanked it from the glue that was holding it in place.

"Leafeon...?" Leafeon tilted its head in wonder. It was uncertain of what its owner had planned.

Alison looked up to her Leafeon before stroking its fur. "Don't worry. I'm not doing anything bad," she said as she tied her own, green ribbon onto Ash's zipper. "There," she mumbled to herself. "Now you'll be thinking of me instead of Serena." She rolled her eyes at saying her name.

* * *

 **~Later that Day~**

Dawn boosted her Piplup up into the air before issuing for it to use Ice Beam. Taking advantage of the momentum, Piplup soared high into the sky before releasing a swirl of icy beads around it. It thrusted its body upwards to do a flip into the air before landing safely into the arms of its owner.

"Wow!" Serena gasped admiring the tiny diamond like specks of ice that were slowly settling into the grass around them. Serena raised her hands, and cupped them together before holding them in front of her. She watched as the ice settled into the palms of her hands, and melting away in her warmthness. "You would make such a great performer, Dawn." She complimented before wiping her wet hands on a handkerchief.

Bonnie nodded with agreement before looking down to Dedenne who was circling around Pancham and Braxien, "We should give it a try too Dedenne!" Bonnie said with aspiring eyes, but her mouse like pokemon was too busy running circles to even pay attention. "Dedenne?" She crossed her arms before pouting. It seemed that Dedenne wasn't all that interested in becoming a performer.

"It's okay, Bonnie." Clemont placed a hand on his sister's shoulder. "If you'd like, maybe Chespin will give it a go. I think it would like to give it a try." Clemont slightly chuckled as he glanced over at his grass type pokemon who was busily trying to imitate the moves that the Eeveelution Squad taught to Braxien, and Pancham just a few hours ago.

"I guess so..." Bonnie sighed.

"Hey you guys!" Ash called out, garnering the attention of the four friends who were sitting in an open field just outside of the hotel. He began jogging over to the group with Sylveon trailing along behind him.

"Ash!" Dawn called out, running over to the raven haired trainer. "How was your rehearsal? Do you still dance with two left feet?" She joked.

"Very funny, Dawn. I'll have you know that I have improved a lot!" Ash glared at the bluenette before looking straight at Pikachu who was running his way. Ash held his arms up, as Pikachu leaped up from the grass. "Hey, buddy." He greeted before embracing his favorite companion in a hug.

Ash sauntered over to the rest of the group before stopping in front of Serena who was sitting on one of the benches. "How was your time with the rest of the squad?" He asked, but was looking forward to Serena's answer the most. "Did you learn anything new?"

"They taught us a lot of tricks," said Dawn. "I could use them in future coordinating events."

"That's great," Ash smiled at Dawn before looking over to Bonnie who had something to say.

"I learned a lot too, but Dedenne wouldn't cooperate with me!" The young blonde whined before glaring at her pokemon who was now asleep on the grass.

Ash chuckled, along with the others before looking over to Serena who looked like she was in a complete daze. "Serena?" He waved his hand in front of her. "How about you? I know you couldn't dance, but was there anything that you wanted to try?"

"Oh yeah," Serena's eyes were glued to the change in color of the ribbon that was tied around his zipper. "Uhmm... Lei gave me her number, and told me I could give her a call whenever I would like to learn something from them."

"Really? That's awesome!" Ash held his hand out to Serena as a gesture for her to take his hand. "We should go inside now. You should get some rest so your ankle will heal a lot faster, and then you can get to practicing!" He held a fist out, feeling pumped up for the girl in front of him.

"Oh, yeah..." Serena feigned a smile before looking over to Dawn who could clearly tell that something was wrong. "But, I actually was going to go on a walk with Dawn."

Ash blinked in surprise. He was ready to protest and repeat what he had just said to her.

"I know I have to rest Ash, but it's nice outside, and I'm sure my ankle can handle a bit of walking." She smiled.

"I should join you then."

"It's okay Ash." She smiled. "You're probably tired, and you have to wake up early for tomorrow's rehearsal."

"Ar-Are you sure?"

"Of course," She managed to stand up on her own before grabbing onto the crutches that were given to her. "You should spend some time with Pikachu too. It definitely missed you." She smiled before hobbling over to Dawn.

"Uhm, okay then..." Ash scratched his head before looking at Serena with concern in his eyes.

"I'll join you two then!" Bonnie said, marching over to the two girls.

"Not so fast, Bonnie!" Clemont called out, grabbing onto his little sister with the help of his aipom arm. "It's already late. You should be getting some sleep."

"But big brother!"

"No but's Bonnie."

"Hmphh!"

* * *

"What's wrong Serena?" Dawn asked as soon as the others disappeared into the hotel. "I thought you would be happy to see Ash."

Serena tucked the crutches under her armpits and slowly began to cross the field. "I was, but, something changed."

"What are you talking about?" Dawn raised an eyebrow. "I guaranteed you that Ash only likes you. He has no interest in Alison whatsoever."

"But the ribbon tied around his zipper isn't blue anymore, it's green." Serena looked down, crestfallen.

"Are you sure? It's a little dark right now. You might have seen it wrong."

"I don't think so." Serena bit her bottom lip. "Alison is so pretty, and she's a great leader. Maybe Ash likes her better."

"That's not true Serena," said Dawn. "Did you see how worried he was back there? He doesn't like her."

"Then why is his ribbon green? I'm sure it's Alison's. She's the one with the Leafeon."

Dawn crossed her arms before looking pass Serena to see the Eeveelution Squad engaging in a late night practice. "Let's go find out then." She stomped over to the group of girls who were in the middle of practicing a synchronized routine.

"Dawn!" Serena called out before eagerly trying to catch up with the bluenette.

"Excuse me, Alison." Dawn pressed the pause button on the small radio that was resting on a bench.

"Hey Dawn!" Lei was the first one to greet the bluenette.

"We're in the middle of a practice here," Alison said before walking over to the radio to resume the music. "If you need help with something, we'll be happy to help you out tomorrow."

"This is very important." Dawn said, vexed. She placed her hand over the buttons of the radio to prevent Alison from pressing play.

"Well, can you make it fast? We really need to practice."

"I'm sure your girls can take a break. They look tired anyways." Dawn pointed out to the rest of the squad who started lying on the grass. "Why are you even practicing at this time, anyways?"

"I had to help Ash earlier, remember?" Alison rolled her eyes.

"Is Ash your main priority or something?" Dawn asked as Serena came to stop behind her, panting with exhaustion.

Alison glanced over to Serena before looking back at Dawn. "As a matter of fact, yes, yes he is."

Serena bit her bottom lip as an attempt to keep it from dropping down in surprise. Her heart began to beat much faster than before, but it didn't feel the same as when she was around Ash. It felt more like it was ready to sink.

"You do know that Ash belongs to Serena, right?"

"Yes, and I don't care."

"So you were the one who replaced Serena's blue ribbon with yours then?"

Alison rolled her eyes before letting out an exasperated sigh.

"Alison that's-" Lei tried to say something, but was quick to stop as Alison whipped her head around to glare at the Jolteon owner.

"Look," She began in a stern tone. "I can tell that Ash is the type of guy who goes for what he wants, and doesn't stop until he gets it. I'm sorry, but Serena is quiet, childish, and weak." She pointed out. "Ash deserves someone who takes charge, like me!" She pointed a finger at herself. "So yes, I got rid of that stupid blue ribbon, and replaced it with a green one, so he would think about me instead!"

"What makes you think that Serena is weak?!" Dawn shouted out in anger, ready to punch the girl in the face.

"For starters, she needs you to confront me. She can't even do it by herself." Alison hissed before looking over to Serena whose eyes were on the verge of shedding a few tears. "Look at her. She's ready to cry. Ash can do better than that!" She laughed. "How pathetic."

"I-I..." Serena tried to say something, but nothing was coming out. It was like she just instantaneously lost her voice. She took a hard gulp before dropping the crutches onto the grass. She then turned around, and began running as fast as she could. She didn't care that her ankle was starting to throb in pain. She just didn't want to be in front of someone who just pointed out who she was - a weak girl, who couldn't take charge of her life. That's why she lied to her mom about becoming a Rhyhorn Racer. That's why it took her years to tell Ash about her own feelings, because she was weak, and couldn't do anything about it.

* * *

Serena sniffled, trying to keep her sobs to a minimum as she pulled the key card from her pocket. She was hoping that the others were now asleep, so that she could sneak off into the washroom. She didn't want them to see her the way she was. She didn't want to worry Ash either, especially when the show was happening the next day.

"Serena," Dawn finally caught up the honey blonde who was just about to turn the knob on the door. "Are you alright?" She asked, noticing her puffy and bloodshot eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I think I just need to rest."

"Don't listen to Alison. She knows nothing about you."

"I know, but I-"

Suddenly, the door in front of her opened widely. Serena turned her head to see Ash standing right in front of her with Pikachu perched up on his shoulder, and Togepi in one of his arms. "Serena, you're back al-?" He came to a stop after noticing that the honey blondes been shedding quite a lot of tears. "Serena? Why are you crying?"

Serena didn't know how to react in this situation. She didn't want him to see that she's been having a hard time the last few days. "I-…" She tried, but the tears began to sting the edges of her eyes once more. "It's nothing!" She sobbed as she pushed Ash to the side to run straight to the washroom.

"Serena?" Clemont stood up from his own bed with worry.

Bonnie did the same before scuttling over to the washroom to make sure that she was okay, but the door was locked, and Serena just wasn't responding to Bonnie's calls.

"What happened?" Ash asked, rushing over to the door. "Dawn, what did you do?" He scowled before turning to look at the bluenette who just walked into the room.

"I don't know, Ash," retorted Dawn. "Why don't you tell me?"

"What are you talking about?" Ash asked, completely unaware of the situation. "What did I do wrong?"

"How could you let Alison replace the blue ribbon on your zipper with one of her own green ones?"

"What are you talking about?" Ash marched over to his jacket that was hanging off the edge of his own bed. "She never-" He came to a stop after noticing that the ribbon was indeed replaced with one that was bright green. Ash pulled the ribbon from his zipper before looking Dawn straight in the eye. "I didn't know that she replaced it. She must have done it when I wasn't looking."

The raven haired trainer marched over to the washroom, and began knocking on the door. "Is this why you're upset, Serena? Because your ribbon is gone? I didn't change it. You know I wouldn't do that."

"What's happening?" Clemont whispered over to his sister. "When did Ash start wearing ribbons around his zipper?"

"Oh big brother..." Bonnie groaned. "You'll learn soon enough, so hush."

"I... Serena if you have a problem with me being in this performance, I'll quit. They already have a backup routine ready without me. It's fine. I don't want to see you hurt."

The honey blonde bit her bottom lip as she stared at herself in the mirror, with streaks of salty tears traveling down her face. Alison's right. I am weak... She thought to herself. Despite how fragile she was feeling, she didn't want that to disrupt what her pokemon loved to do, which was to perform. She wanted to see them on that stage, especially now that Angel, and Lilith added Pancham and Braxien to their own routine. She wanted so bad for them to get up on the stage again.

Serena took a deep breath before mustering the courage to open the door that Ash just couldn't stop knocking. "Ash!" She yelled out as she opened the door.

"Serena..." The boy backed up, startled. He then proceeded to reach out to Serena to comfort her, but Serena swatted his hand away like it was an annoying fly.

"Ash, I don't want you to quit the show!" She said out loud through her sobs. "I want to see you perform with Sylveon. I want to see my pokemon perform on the stage with the Eeveelution Squad."

"But, Serena. There will always be other performances. It's okay to miss this one. Your pokemon only want to perform if you're happy, and they like it even better when it's with you. "

"That's not what I want though! I want to see them on that stage. I want to see them without me for once. Maybe that way I can see how they are, and I can improve as a performer."

"Serena..." Ash whispered softly, realizing that Serena was willing to go through this hardship to improve her skills as a performer.

"This is what I want, Ash. Just please... We'll deal with it after the show. I'll be fine." She tried her best to put on a smile before wiping away the mixture of tears and snot from her face.

"Okay..."

* * *

 **~The Next Day~**

Serena sat at the front of the theatre with the others. Just before the start of the first scene, she joined her pokemon back stage to give them a good luck speech. They were all reluctant to participate in the show, but Serena encouraged them to do so. She knew that she made a good decision though. As soon as she saw them enter the stage, it was like the frowns were quickly replaced with joyous smiles. Serena knew that feeling all too well. Being on stage was the number one thing that made her troubles instantaneously wash away. Her pokemon must have been feeling the same way.

"Are you okay Serena?" Dawn whispered as Serena looked over the pamphlet that contained the list of scenes. Her eyes skimmed over one of the last few scenes labelled ' Sealed with a Kiss'. Of course Alison would add in a kiss.

"I'm fine." She whispered back before looking up to Alison who was prancing around with her Leafeon up on stage. She watched as she twirled around before falling into Ash's arms.

Suddenly, Alison's words from the day before began to replay in her mind. Serena is quiet, childish, and weak... She needs you to confront me... How pathetic... Serena clenched her fist, causing the pamphlet to crinkle in the grip of her hand.

Alison didn't know her at all. Before she started her journey with Ash, she had to admit she was weak. But she's been through so much with him, and everyone else since she embarked on this journey. The last thing she was, was weak.

The honey blonde stood from her seat as she eyed Alison who was enjoying her time with Ash on the stage.

"Serena?" Bonnie whispered. "What are you doing?"

"I'll be right back."

* * *

"Serena? What are you doing back here?" Lei asked as Serena marched over to the rest of the squad that was preparing for the next scene.

"Lei, I need your help." Serena said with hope in her eyes. "I know that you're friends with Alison, but I-"

"I know." Lei winked, knowing what Serena wanted. "Alison's a great performer, but she has boy issues. She always wants what she can't have. We've dealt with it dozens of times."

"You got that right," said Lyn with crossed arms. Her Vaporeon was quick to nod with agreement.

"The kiss is happening soon. Ash doesn't even know about it," said Lei. "So what did you need?"

"I need to get on that stage..." Serena said with determination in her eyes.

"You got it!" Lei said, enthusiastically, and the rest of the squad crowded around Serena before pushing her into one of the makeup chairs.

* * *

"Oh, Prince Ash!" Alison began, "I'm so happy that you're okay!" She ran over to the raven haired boy before throwing her arms around him.

"It's all because of you," said Ash, meeting Alison's eyes before looking over to Fira, Lyn, and Aurora who stood behind her with their Eeveelutions.

"We'll get you next time!" Lilith growled, trying to break free from the ropes that held her together.

"Umbre!" Her Umbreon hissed from its confined, glass cage.

"Princess Alison," Ash said before grabbing onto her hand. "I was such a wreck until you came into my life, how can I express my gratitude?"

Serena gripped onto the piece of rope, before engaging in a rhythmic breathing routine. She was suddenly regretting her decision.

She looked over to her outfit once more, making sure that the lose pieces weren't caught in any of the stage props. She was wearing a white, puffy sweet heart dress with blue and pink trim. Attached to her back was a big bow mimicking the ones on a Sylveon, and to match, she wore a headband that had the same bow glued to the side of it.

"Are you ready?" Asked Lei.

"No, maybe I should just let them kiss, and deal with it after," said Serena. "I mean it's-"

"Prove to Alison that you aren't weak!" Lei encouraged her, before pushing Serena off of the platform.

Serena tried her best to hold in her screams as she gripped onto the rope with all her might. She watched as Alison suggested for the two to kiss. Before Ash could even answer to her, Alison began leaning into the boy, ready to kiss him on the lips.

Serena furrowed her eyebrows in determination before letting go of the rope. As if on cue, Espeon used its psychic powers to aid with Serena's safety to the stage.

As Serena's white boots came into contact with the ground below her, Serena held up the prop of a heart shaped wand, and pointed it straight to Alison who had a shocking look on her face.

"What are you doing here?!" Alison gasped as Ash turned his attention to the honey blonde who just set foot on the stage.

Serena took a deep breath, finding it hard to believe what was going to come out of her mouth. "Prince Ash is my boyfriend!" She announced. "And you're the one who took him away from me! I challenge you to a battle, and winner gets to keep his heart!"

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Mine:** With a sprained ankle, Serena has challenged the leader of the eeveelution squad, Alison to a battle for Ash's heart in the middle of their playformance. Tired from the jealousy they've both gone through, Ash comes up with an idea to make Serena feel better for what she had to go through.


	17. Mine

**Note:** Hey guys! This is a pretty short chapter. I was initially going to add the next chapter with this, but I've decided not too. So this is just the battle really. ow, I'm not very good at writing battles, and I prefer to stay away from them cause I suck, but how else can you improve, right? haha [This is why I just write school fics, but pokemon ain't pokemon w/o some battles].

Anywho, I'm if you don't like the battle very much. :( AND once again, thanks to everyone who left a review! **Rob401a, DeretArmourShippping, MinecraftMew, PunishedEagle88, IadoreAMOUR, DoodleRose, Q-A Authoress, ultimateCCC, idotpart1, MANbearPIG01, FantasyLover88, Tenzalucard123, 49ers, espeon44, wolves22, 2 Guests.**

 **Ya'll are prettiful people.**

* * *

 **Summary:** With a sprained ankle, Serena has challenged the leader of the eeveelution squad, Alison to a battle for Ash's heart in the middle of their playformance. After the outcome of the battle, Ash takes charge, and does something to make Serena feel better after what she's gone through.

* * *

 **EP 17: Mine**

Her hand slightly trembled as she pointed the prop straight ahead at her love rival, Alison. Her legs were shaky, and her heart was resounding throughout her entire body. She found herself doing something that she thought she would never do. But here she was, doing it anyway. She guessed that love did make people do crazy things.

"Serena...?" Ash managed to utter her name. He was feeling some sort of aftershock after hearing the honey blonde announce him as her boyfriend in front of the entire crowd. "I'm your...?" His shyness made him unable to say the word boyfriend. Instead, his eyes glazed over the floorboards in front of him, and you could tell that the honey blonde was currently the only thing on his mind.

"Wait, what?" Clemont's voice could be heard. "Boyfriend?" He stood up as he frantically shifted his eyes between the two who he's been travelling with for months. "They are dating?" He threw his head in his hands. "How did I not know about this?! I've been with them the entire time!" He looked over to Bonnie and Dawn who were stifling their laughter. "You two knew about this didn't you?"

Dawn and Bonnie looked over to one another, no longer able to keep their laughs to themselves. "Of course we did!" Bonnie replied.

"Wh-What?! Even Dawn? But Dawn has only been travelling with us for a couple weeks!"

"Oh hush big brother," Bonnie grabbed onto Clemont's sleeve, urging him to sit back down. "We'll talk about it later!"

"Wow," Alison began with a smug look. "Your own friend wasn't even aware of your relationship." She paused before looking over to Ash. She wanted to say much more, but stopped herself because of his presence. "Alright then. Let's have a battle." She looked downwards, nodding at her Leafeon.

"Al-Alright." Serena gulped before bringing the wand down to her side. She looked over to her Sylveon who still stood next to Ash. With determined eyes she gave her fairy pokemon a nod, and Sylveon obediently sauntered towards its trainer.

"Serena..." Ash shook his head as he followed behind Sylveon.

"Ash, I-"

"I don't know what's going on," he interrupted. "But you know I love battles... Good luck, Serena." He smiled lopsidedly before walking over to the side where the rest of the eeveelution squad were standing.

A faint smile formed upon the honey blonde's face as she watched Ash take his place next to Fira and her Flareon. She then averted her attention to Lei who walked away from the others and began announcing the rules for their battle. The same old rules that you would hear for any battle. She then waved her hand up in the air, and announced for the battle to begin.

Alison rolled her eyes before pointing towards her opponent. "Let's get this over with," she said with a smirk on her face. "Leafeon, use Quick Attack!" She issued her own pokemon.

"Leafeon!" The grass type eeveelution scurried across the stage with a tint of green emitting from its body.

Serena clenched her fist in determination to start, and end this battle with the perfect combination of moves. She nodded at her Sylveon who was looking to her for guidance. "Sylveon, use Swift!" She commanded her Sylveon as Leafeon neared it on the center of the stage.

Sylveon happily obliged before jumping high up into the air. It did a flip before, a multitude of glowing, golden stars shot from its ribbons. In a matter of seconds, the attack grazed against Leafeon's body, causing it to lose its footing. The grassy pokemon stopped in its tracks, losing its rhythm as the stars following behind it, came into contact with its whole body.

Leafeon yelped in pain before shaking it off as if it was nothing. It then stood with its legs straight up, awaiting for its command from its trainer.

"Not bad..." Alison managed to compliment her Sylveon's strength. "Leafeon, Sunny Day!"

Suddenly, the rays of the sun peeking through the windows around the auditorium began to shine its light at Leafeon who stood near the center of the stage. It's leaf like ears, and tail began to omit a bright light, and everyone in the room raised their arms to cover their eyes from the blinding gleam. As the light slightly dimmed, everyone lowered their arms and were welcomed to a much brighter, and warmer room; almost like they were all standing in a greenhouse.

Sunny Day? Serena thought to herself as she lowered her own arms. The move sounded very much familiar, but she couldn't grasp where she's seen the move being used once before. She hadn't the time to think about though, she had to continue on with the battle.

"Alright, Sylveon! Swift, again!" She issued for the same move, and once again, Sylveon jumped high above the stage, and sent a platoon of stars at its opponent.

"Not so fast!" Alison yelled, "Quick Attack, Let's go!"

Serena's eyes widened in shock as she watched Leafeon pounce about the stage much faster than it did the first time. With ease, Leafeon was able to avoid the stars that were flying towards it. As the stars hit the floorboards all around it, Leafeon continued its run towards Sylveon, and in seconds, Sylveon was bruised by the attack, and was sent flying backwards.

"Sylve..." Sylveon yelped in pain before using its ribbons to get ahold of itself. The fairy type pokemon flipped about in the air before landing on its legs on the ground below it.

Why did it get faster? Serena thought, trying to figure out what was going on. It all seemed too familiar, but she couldn't put a finger on it. Serena raised a hand to her chest, trying to figure out what was going on in the battle.

Suddenly, it just occurred to Serena that Alison's Leafeon must have Chlorophyll as its hidden ability. Using the move Sunny Day must have activated Leafeon's hidden ability, and in return it increased its speed. It was exactly like Ash's battle against Ramos at the Couramine City Gym. Even with that kind of knowledge, she wasn't sure as to how she was going to beat Alison now. She wasn't much of a battler, and she could barely remember how Ash dealt with it.

"Serena..." Ash called out, garnering her attention. "You're doing fine! Just stay calm, and you'll win it!" He cheered her on with Pikachu, who managed to scurry onto the stage without her noticing. The honey blonde smiled at the boy before taking in a deep breath. She then looked towards her Sylveon who was once again, awaiting for her guidance.

"Sylveon..." Serena paused, before looking over to Alison who had a devilish grin on her face. She wasn't sure as to what she could do, but this was currently the only thing she could think of. "Use Fairy Wind!" She commanded.

Sylveon stood still on the stage, and wiggled its ribbons in front of it. As it raised its ribbons, a burst of colorful air came from it, and headed right towards the Leafeon in front of it.

"Oh Serena," Alison began. "My Leafeon's a bit too fast for your Sylveon now. Dodge it Leafeon..." Alison commanded before imitating a yawn to provoke Serena.

Leafeon pounced about the area, dodging the gust of wind that Sylveon was trying so hard to control to hit its target.

"I'll let you try again..." Alison said rather cocky. She seemed to be getting a little too confident with how battle was turning out.

Serena wanted to run towards Alison, and rip her hair off her head so badly. She didn't like how this girl was treating her like some kid who was unable to accomplish anything. Maybe if I use Double Team, I'll manage to sneak a hit...

Serena took a deep breath before issuing her Sylveon to use Double Team. The fairy type pokemon jumped from the stage, and over a dozen replicas of it scattered all around the area. In sync, the dozens of Sylveon's ran about the stage, trying to confuse its opponent.

"So your Sylveon knows Double Team..." Alison said as a serious expression returned to her face. She then looked straight at her Leafeon, meeting its eyes. Serena looked over to the pair, and was able to tell that the two were having some sort of conversation just through eye contact. She didn't want to admit it, but because of that, she knew that Alison and her Leafeon were well synchronized, and had quite a strong bond. That didn't matter though. She was going to win the battle.

"Use Swift!" Serena urged her Sylveon once more.

The dozens of Sylveon's around then, unwound their ribbons, and a cluster of stars began to shoot around the area.

"Razor Leaf, Leafeon." Alison managed to say, in a calm and peaceful manner. With its speed, a shroud of leaves enveloped the Leafeon before shooting out in all directions. In a matter of seconds, the dozens of Sylveon replicas poofed into thin air, leaving the only, real one on the stage.

"Quick attack," Alison issued once more, causing Leafeon to once again charge at its now vulnerable opponent.

"Protect!" Serena called out as Leafeon neared her pokemon.

The fairy type tried its best to summon a barrier, but was hit by Leafeon's quick attack, and was unable to do so. Serena watched as her fairy type pokemon was once again thrown into the air before, hitting the floorboards beneath it. Serena watched as her Sylveon laid their motionless.

"Sylveon!" Serena called out, "Are you okay? Can you still battle?" Serena clenched her fists, and teeth as she watched her fairy type pokemon struggle to pull itself up on its legs.

The rest of the eeveelution squad, and the crowd around them gasped with sorrow, awaiting to see the rest of the battle unfold in front of them.

"I guess you can learn a thing from two when your grandfather is the Couramine City Gym leader," Alison bragged as she watched Serena's Sylveon try to pull itself up.

"No way..." Serena managed to hear Bonnie say.

Ignoring the encouragement from her friends, and the crowd around her, Serena looked at her Sylveon meeting its eyes with her own, sorrowful ones. "You can do this, Sylveon." Serena offered her words of encouragement. "I believe in you. We can win this together, and beat Alison!" She finished off, causing Alison to laugh in her face.

"Oh please." Alison rolled her eyes. "Let's finish this! Leafeon! Raz-"

Alison stopped in her tracks, as everyone stared at Serena's Sylveon. As Sylveon stood on all fours, its feelers spread wide open, and behind it, an image of the moon formed.

"Big brother..." Bonnie tugged on Clemont's sleeve. "What is that?" She asked. "What's happening?"

"I think Sylveon just leaned Moonblast," Clemont answered, awestruck about what was going on in the battle.

Suddenly, a pink orb began to form at Sylveon's mouth, and as it continued to gather more energy, Sylveon let out a loud grunt before aiming it at the Leafeon in front of it.

"Leafeon!" Leafeon cried out loud as the contact created an explosion in the auditorium.

"What's happening?" Dawn asked as everyone began squinting their eyes to make out the outcome of the battle.

Within a minute, the dust around them has cleared to reveal a fallen Leafeon that was no longer able to move.

"Serena, and her Sylveon are the winner!" Lei announced with joy, causing the rest of the crowd to respond with their own joyful cheers.

Serena ran towards her Sylveon, and embraced it in a tight hug. She smiled at her eeveelution as it wrapped its ribbons around her. She then looked towards Alison who returned her own Leafeon to its pokeball. For a short moment, the two girls met eyes, and all that Alison could manage to do was roll her eyes before walking away.

On cue, the rest of the squad followed behind Alison, but as they left, the girls gave their applause to the honey blonde. Serena smiled at Lei, and mouthed the words thanks for all her help. Lei simply smiled back, and tugged on the rope to bring the curtains together.

"Serena!" Dawn yelled out, running onto the stage. "You did great!" The bluenette embraced her friend in a hug before Bonnie spread her own arms to initiate a group hug.

"You really did do great," Ash complimented as the girls pulled away from one another.

"Well, you do inspire me, Ash." Serena replied as Clemont walked onto the stage, out of breath, with Togepi in his arms.

"When.. did... you... two.. start dating?" He heaved before placing Togepi on the ground to play with Pikachu.

"I-" The two lovebirds began in sync before looking to one another, flustered.

"You can ask them all the questions you want later, big brother. I think we should leave these two love birds alo-"

Bonnie trailed off as she looked towards Togepi who was constantly cheering and walking about in a circle. The egg like pokemon began to glow a bright blue before being enveloped in a bright, shining orb.

"Is it...?" Dawn trailed off as everyone circled around the glowing Togepi.

"It's evolving," said Bonnie with excitement. "This is just great! Sylveon learned Moonblast, and now Togepi is evolving!"

Togepi began to glow brighter, and brighter until, finally revealing itself to be a newly evolved Togetic.

"Awh, it so cute." Serena eyed the angelic looking pokemon that began to fly around the group of companions.

"We definitely have to celebrate now!" Dawn cheered before linking her arm with Serena's, and Bonnie's. "Let's go!"

* * *

"… they say that it will appear before kindhearted, caring people and shower them with happiness." Serena's pokedex finished off with Togetic's description.

"You got that right." Serena mumbled to herself happily before closing her pokedex and returning it to her pocket.

As she sat on a bench, watching her own pokemon play around with the other pokemon, she felt very much ecstatic. She then looked over to Dawn, and Bonnie who were practicing the acrobatic moves that the eeveelution squad has taught them in the last few days. They surely were determined to get at least one of those moves right. She then looked over to Clemont, who was of course, sitting at a table, tweaking his own inventions. She began to wonder about Clemont's next invention that he had in stored for them to see. It was probably going to be great, but it was definitely going to fail.

"Hey Serena...?" Serena turned her head to see Ash, standing next to the bench. "Can I join you?" He asked, shyly.

"Of course," Serena blushed before scooting over to make some room for him.

"I just wanted to tell you that... I think you did great, battling." He complimented while rubbing his nose with his index finger.

"Thanks, Ash, but it was just luck. If Sylveon hadn't learned Moonblast, then I would have lost."

"But, because of your bond with Sylveon, Sylveon did learn it, and it proves that you're a great trainer," he replied.

Serena looked straight ahead at her Sylveon that was chasing Togetic around with the rest of their pokemon. She supposed Ash was right. What happened during the battle proved that her bond with Sylveon was very much strong.

"Hey, Serena..." Ash began once more, breaking Serena away from her thoughts.

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry for not noticing Alison's motives. I guess that doesn't make me a very good _boyfriend_ , huh?" He lowered his voice on the word boyfriend. The word was still strange and very much foreign to him. Still, he liked it, and how it made his insides all tingly and warm.

Serena giggled, before turning her head to look at Ash. "Ash, I've had a crush on you the entire time, and it took you how long to notice?" Her laugh grew louder. "I didn't expect you to notice anything. Besides, you were busy trying to learn the moves, and when you're determined to learn something, you don't pay much attention to the world around you."

"Yeah..." Ash sighed. "I would still like to make it up to you though."

"Make it up to me...?" Serena raised an eyebrow, unsure as to what he wanted.

"Yeah... Since we're a couple, I would like to take you out on a date," he replied. "It would be the perfect way to start off the League."

The familiar throbbing heart, trembling hands, and tamato red face began to take hold of the honey blonde. She never thought that she would ever get the chance to go on a date with Ash. Even if he confessed his own feelings to her, she still found it completely surprising.

"What do you say?" Ash asked, meeting her eyes. "We'll spend the entire day out tomorrow!"

"I-I would like that..." Serena managed to say.

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **Serena & Ash's First Date:** Ash and Serena finally go on a date. :)

 **NOTE:** I might not upload next Sunday, but we will see.


	18. Ash & Serena's First Date

**Note:** Hey guys! I was able to finish my chapter in time Woohoo! :)

Have you guys seen the trailers for Sun & Moon? I'm sort of disappointed at the moment. Especially with the art style and how Ash seems to ahve reverted back to being.. well ... dumb. :( And there also seems to be no sign for Serena /3.

Anywho, thanks to everyone who has left a review for the last chapter! **(ThePunishedEagle, Guest, Dat Boi, becky, Reader7543, .delicious, FantasyLover88, MinecraftMew, Q-A Authoress, Rob401a, ultimateCCC, Rams30, Tenzalucard123, MANbearPIG01, wolves22, 49ers, espeon44).**

Also thanks to those who left positive reviews for the battle in the last chapter. It's nice to know that I've at least have started off with the right foot with writing them. Maybe we will be seeing more battles in future stories! :)

* * *

 **Summary:** Ash and Serena finally go on their first date. J Will it be what Serena has expected?

* * *

 **EP 18: Ash & Serena's First Date**

"Great job you guys!" The aspiring Pokemon Master complimented through his jagged breathing. The boy huffed as he fell to his knees, before finally falling backwards onto the grassy field.

As his breaths began to resort back to a comfortable state, he stared up at the cloudless blue sky where the sun was slowly making its way above the horizon. He's been training in the early hours, and just couldn't manage to take a break. He was very much confident in winning the league, but he still felt incredibly nervous.

"Pika pi?" Pikachu tilted its head as it came into his view.

"You guys all deserve a break," he said as the rest of his Pokemon gathered by his side. "Let's all relax until Clemont is done with cooking breakfast!"

"Pika pi!" Pikachu cheered, followed by the rest of his Pokemon.

The raven haired trainer smiled to himself before bringing his hands up to his view. They've been shaky since the day before, and as much as he kept convincing himself that he didn't know the reason for it, he actually knew of the reason all to well.

It began shortly after he asked Serena on a date. When he asked her, it didn't seem like much of a big deal at the time, but once he settled into his bed, it was the only thing that was on his mind. Never in his entire life has he ever thought about girls and dates. It was always just Pokemon and battles. He never really knew what a date entailed, other than a girl and a boy hanging out. Were there certain things they were supposed to do that made it a date? Was he supposed to have something planned for her? Was he supposed to get her some kind of gift? These questions and much more circled through his mind the entire night, and the only thing that's been keeping his nerves down was this early morning training session. He didn't want to tell Serena about his worries either. He felt embarrassed since he was the one who asked her out. Plus, he didn't want her to see him in a panic. He's fought countless gyms, and saved dozens of Pokemon while putting himself in danger. There was absolutely no way that Serena was going to see him struggle over a mere date.

The raven haired trainer sighed as he straightened out his legs. He sat up straight and refitted his cap comfortably on his head before looking straight ahead of him at an older couple. He watched as the man comfortably wrapped his arm around his woman before caressing her arm. He then looked to the woman who began to snuggle up to him while resting her head on his shoulder. The man then turned his head, and kissed her on the forehead. With that, Ash could slightly hear the two exchange their words of love to one another.

Ash could feel his cheeks burn red as he continued to watch the touchy couple. Was that something he was supposed to do with Serena? They've held hands, and kissed a few times. Was snuggling something on her agenda? Were they supposed to say 'I love you'?

"Boo~!" The familiar voice of the Dedenne owner whispered sharply into his ear.

Startled, Ash jumped up from the grass before stumbling, and toppling back onto it.

"Bo-Bonnie!" He faltered as he rubbed the slight pain emanating from his behind. "Wh-When did you get here?! Don't scare me like that!" He pressed his palm against his chest where his heart was beating rapidly.

"Did I just catch you staring at that couple?" Bonnie snickered before pointing ahead at the couple that was enjoying each other's company.

"What!?" His cheeks turned a deeper shade of crimson. "No, I was just staring at the sun…" He rubbed his nape, flustered.

Bonnie giggled as a mischievous grin formed upon her face. "Are you nervous because you have a date with Serena?" She whispered to make him feel less embarrassed, but said it loud enough for all of his Pokemon to hear.

Each one of his Pokemon turned their heads with curiosity.

The raven haired trainer simply waved them off and told them to continue with their resting time.

"How do you know about that?" He asked, genuinely surprised. He guessed that maybe Serena told her, but she wouldn't do that, would she?

"I have my ways…" she said with her grin.

For the first time in his life, he was actually sort of scared of Bonnie.

"Anyways," Her grin turned into a sweet smile. "Breakfast is ready. Clemont asked me to bring you in. Serena would have done it, but you know… she's too busy trying to look pretty for you."

"But Serena always looks pretty to me…" Ash responded rather quickly.

"That's good to know!" The young blonde began scurrying back into the hotel. "I'll make sure to tell her that!" She called out, causing the raven haired trainer to chase after her in a panic.

* * *

Ash paced himself around the lobby with Pikachu sitting on the cushioned sofa beside him. Breakfast was rather... uncomfortable for him. He sat across Serena, and the entire time, the others kept asking her questions about her battle with Alison. After yesterday, Serena was just too tired to talk about it all that much, and just wanted to have time to herself. That was understandable. Still, he wanted to ask her a bunch of questions about how she felt during the battle too, but he couldn't bring himself to talk. All he did was stuff his face with Clemont's delicious dishes, and then scurried off to take a shower.

 _What is wrong with me?_ He thought to himself. This was much worse than when he figured out his own feelings, and confessed them to her.

"Ash!" The honey blonde called out, pulling the worried trainer out of his thoughts.

Ash turned his head, and watched the honey blonde scurry across the lobby to join him. Behind her was their newly evolved Togetic, fluttering along by her side.

"Se-Serena!" He stammered before turning his full body to face her. As he did, Pikachu jumped off the sofa, and climbed its way up to its rightful place on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I'm late," she apologized before tilting her head to the side, and warming him with a sweet smile. "I think Dawn is getting into performing. She's really been wanting to..."

At that moment, Ash could feel his hands tremble and his knees go weak. He was looking at her lips move, but none of the words were entering his ears. She suddenly looked prettier than before. She was always pretty, but he just never noticed how pretty she really was. Her hair looked shinier, her smile looked brighter... she looked happier.

He sort of heard her apologize about her tardiness, but all he could think about was why he was suddenly so uncomfortable around her presence.

"Ash...?" The honey blonde blinked before tapping him on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Ash shook his head. "I'm fine," he said as he rubbed his nose with his index finger. "I guess I'm just a bit tired from all that training."

"The competition starts tomorrow..." Serena mumbled with a slight frown. "If you'd like, we can postpone this date, so you can continue with your training. I don't want to get in the way of you achieving your dream."

He's trained so much in the morning, and in the past week (not to mention all that practice with the performance). To be honest, this was the first time he just wasn't feeling up to it. Besides, he needed a break, and his Pokemon definitely needed one too. "No," he said. "I asked you on a d-date. My Pokemon deserve a break too." He then raised his right arm, and made a fist. "We all trained hard, and now they need all the rest they can get so they have energy for tomorrow's battles!" He started to feel fired up for the conference.

Serena giggled as she fiddled with the blue ribbon on her dress. "That's the Ash I know!" She smiled at him again, causing his heart to flutter much faster. "So where will we be going?" Serena asked.

"Where. Will. We. Be..." Ash repeated before realizing that he didn't have any sort of plans for their date. He wasn't even aware that he had to make any kind of plans. He thought that they would be choosing what they wanted to do together.

The honey blonde giggled once more before reaching into her pocket for her handheld device. "It's just like you to not have thought about that..."

"You sure know me..." He mumbled to himself, already feeling like the date was turning into some kind of failure.

 _Get a grip on yourself..._ Ash thought before nodding his head in determination. He wasn't going to let his nervousness get in the way of having a great day with Serena. So what he didn't plan anything? He was more of a spontaneous guy anyways.

He glanced up at Serena who was busily using her finger to swipe away at her screen. He then took a deep breath before circling around her, and leaning over her shoulder to get a better look at any nearby places where they could have some fun.

With his still trembling hands, Ash raised a finger and pointed towards one of the several blue dots that were sporadically placed across the screen. "How about there?" He pointed towards the dot that was closest to the hotel.

"Hmm...?" Serena used her thumb and index finger to zoom in on where Ash was pointing. "Here," said Serena as she handed him her handheld device. "Why don't you hold it? You can pick a place, and we can start walking there. It can be a complete surprise for me." She smiled at the boy as he grabbed onto the device.

Ash's fingers continued to tremble as Serena assured him that any place would be fine. Even with that, there were a lot of places that Serena could possibly hate. He looked down at the screen, and began to read the list of places that were nearby.

 _PokeKarting. Would Serena like that? Kalos Historical Museum. Would that be too boring for her?_ His head began to ache due to the amount of overthinking that was going on in his brain. _I'll just close my eyes, and place my finger randomly on the screen. Whatever is closest will be fine, right?_ Ash took a deep breath while he gripped onto the device comfortably with his left hand. He then raised his other hand, and shut his eyes tightly before applying a bit of pressure on the screen with his index finger.

He applied a little too much pressure though, and his grip on the device was still lacking due to his now sweaty hands. In a flash of a second, the device fell before him, and before he could react to the situation, the corner of the device hit the hard linoleum floors beneath them.

Ash gasped as he reached out to it, but was already too late. He watched the entirety of the screen crack, as several tiny pieces of the device broke apart and scattered around the lobby.

Despite all of it happening in a mere minute, Ash felt like it all happened within a billion hours. He then looked up at the honey blonde who bent down to gather all of the pieces that fell around him. Suddenly, time reverted back to normal, and Ash shook his head in confusion. "I'm so sorry, Serena! I didn't mean to drop it," he apologized before getting on his knees to gather the pieces. Pikachu jumped off his shoulder, and began doing the same with Togetic.

"It's okay," Serena smiled, but Ash could tell there was some disappointment behind it. "Accidents happen all the time. It's a good thing we have an inventor traveling with us." She giggled. "I can just ask Clemont to fix it, then we can leave."

"Yeah," mumbled Ash as he rubbed the back of his head. "It's a good thing we have Clemont..."He trailed off after realizing that Bonnie was his younger sister. Bonnie was aware of his nervousness, and as of now, he was sort of scared to face her. That mischievous grin sent chills down his spine, and he did not want her telling Serena about how much this date was affecting him. What if she already told her about his slip up just a few hours ago?

Ash looked up to see Serena holding all of the pieces in her arms. She stood up straight from her knees before getting ready to head towards the elevator.

"Hey Serena!" He called out in a panic as he rushed over in front of her.

Serena stopped, meeting his chocolate colored eyes. The sudden contact just increased his feelings of anxiety. "What is it Ash?" She asked.

"Pika?" Pikachu, who stood next to Serena tilted its head to the side. It was rather confused by how its trainer has been acting in the last few hours.

"Why don't we have it fixed somewhere in town?!" He said, befuddled. "I'm sure there's a repair shop around here... We can just drop it off there, and pick it up at the end of the day!" He rubbed his cheek with his index finger.

Serena blinked before taking a minute to reply. "But Clemont is right here, and I don't think he would like it very much if we went to some other place. Plus, he loves tweaking with technology."

They were all very good points, and Ash had no idea as to how he was going to counter any of them. "But... But..." His mind began to scroll through the memories of his own interactions with Clemont's devices. "But... they blow up in our faces most of the time! You don't want to use it tomorrow, and have it blow up in your face!" He pointed out with his arms out in the air. "It would be unfixable at that point!"

"You do make a good point there..." Serena said, and Ash could tell that she was starting to think of all the times Clemont's inventions blew up in their faces. "Alright then... He's probably too busy with tweaking his other inventions anyway." Serena replied before saying that she was going to ask the front counter for the nearest repair shop.

Ash sighed in relief before rubbing the beads of sweat that was gathering at the center of his forehead. The lobby was fully air conditioned, but he felt like he was basking under the desert sun. As much as he wanted to spend the day with Serena, he definitely felt like this was going to be the longest day ever.

* * *

Ash followed Serena out of the repair shop, and watched as she stuffed the receipt into the front pocket of her backpack. They had to come back at 9PM to pick up her newly refurbished device, so that basically gave them nine hours all to themselves.

"How about we go there?" Serena said, pointing to the large banner located at the end of the street.

"Huh?" Ash turned his head to the right, and read the words _'Lumiose Conference Carnival'_ across the banner.

"I think it would be fun, plus it's right beside the repair shop!" Serena pointed out before grabbing onto Ash's hand, and leading him down the street.

Ash's eyes opened widely as he stared down at Serena's hand that was interlocking around his fingers comfortably. He's held her hand countless times, but this time it was making his emotions go all over the place. _I hope she doesn't notice how sweaty my hands are..._ He gulped as they reached the entrance of the carnival.

"Two tickets, please!" He heard Serena talking to the man who stood behind a podium.

In just a few minutes, the two were in the carnival that were crowded by a lot of familiar faces who were also staying at their hotel. He glanced over at Serena who was eying the place in wonder, most likely trying to find the first activity for them to do.

The raven haired trainer smiled to himself, happy to see that Serena was still rather upbeat about their date even when he accidentally broke her device. He firmly nodded in determination to make the rest of their day together even better.

Ash looked around him and spotted a few other couples walking around the area. He closely examined each of the girls, and noticed that they were all holding a stuffed poke-plushie in their arms. He then looked around at the different mini games in the area, and quickly put together the fact that their significant other must have won them those stuffed poke-plushies. He then looked over to the prizes, and began eying each plushie that was hanging around the stands. Scanning over the immediate area, the first thing that he felt Serena would like was the stand that contained a bunch of pokepuff looking plushies. Serena loved baking pokepuffs. Ash was sure that she would love to have one for herself, especially one that was won from him.

"Would you like me to win you one of those prizes?" Ash pointed towards the mini game that seemed to be consisting of scoring three pokeball looking basketballs into a hoop.

"Sure, Ash! That would be great!" She once again warmed him with her incredulous smile, and the two headed towards the stand.

"Hey there! Would you like to give this game a shot?" The man at the booth asked as the two neared the area.

"You bet I do!" Ash said with determination before stretching his arms above his head. He was going to win Serena a pokepuff plushie with one try.

"Alright then, that will be three credits!" The man said before raising his palm.

Ash reached into the depths of his pocket, pulling out the card that Serena got from the man at the front entrance. If he remembered, they had thirty credits to enjoy the games and rides at the carnival. He was going to win her a ton of prizes, and even go on a couple rides. It was all falling into the right places now. It was going to be the best date she's ever been on. Even better than that time she was out with Daniel.

Ash handed the man his card, and in just a few seconds the man swiped it on his credit reader, and handed it back. He then explained Ash the rules; score three consecutive baskets without missing a single one. That shouldn't be so hard for him.

Of course though... That all changed the second he sneaked a glance at Serena who was providing him with words of encouragement. As Pikachu jumped off his shoulder, and into Serena's arms, Ash gulped hard as he reached for one of the basketballs. His confidence suddenly deteriorated as his beating heart began to distract himself from aligning the ball with the basket. His fingers once again trembled, and his clammy hands were now sticking to the material of his gloves. They were sweating for quite some time now, and it just made touching anything, uncomfortable.

He took a deep breath before trying to refocus on the task at hand. He gulped again before releasing the ball from the grip of his hands. Ash watched the ball with hope, and his lips quickly curved downwards at the sight of the ball bouncing off the edge of the hoop.

"That's alright, young man." The man said with a husky tone. "Everyone chokes on their first try. You may have another chance for free."

"Oh... thanks," Ash mumbled, feeling quite embarrassed by the fact that Serena had to see him fail at such a simple task.

"You can do it this time, Ash!" Serena said as Togetic and Pikachu offered their own words of encouragement. "I believe in you." She smiled.

It wasn't very much help though. His feelings were getting the best of him, and once again he failed within the first shot. Despite all that, he was still extra determined to win her one of those pokepuff plushies. Without being aware of it though, he used twenty one out of the thirty credits they had. Seven tries, and the only time he got close to even getting the plushie was on the fifth try where he made it the last shot... but failed.

"You sure you want to try again?" The man asked. "There are other games out there."

He really wanted to win Serena one of those plushies, but he didn't want waste the remainder of their credits on the slim chance of winning her a prize. Even with that determination, he was still feeling like the date was slowly starting to become a terrible one. Her date with Daniel was probably better than this.

"It's okay, Ash," Serena said as she placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's pretty hard to score three baskets in a row. I know it would take me a dozen times to even achieve that kind of goal."

She was obviously trying to make him feel better. Something she always did when he felt down. It was one of the many reasons as to why he liked her so much, but this time her attempt to console him wasn't working. He wanted to win one of those prizes to show that he appreciated her for that reason, and many more. He guessed that he could show that appreciation through something else.

"I guess so..." Ash reached for his nape, and began to rub it. "What would you like to do-"

"WOOHOOO!" A boy yelled out, causing the two to turn their heads, "I am on a roll!" The voice sounded familiar.

Ash squinted his own eyes as Serena turned one eighty degrees to see what was going on. Beside the familiar figure was a dozens of poke plushies stacked up on a red wagon.

"You're going to win all my prizes before anyone else has the chance to!" The man at the booth next to them chuckled.

"I'm going to win all the prizes here!" The boy replied before breaking out into a dance.

As he moved, Serena and Ash finally caught the boys face, and saw that it was Tierno.

"Tierno!" Serena called out before raising her arm above her head, and waving him over.

Tierno blinked upon hearing his name. He then darted his eyes around the area before finally spotting the pair that were still in front of the basketball booth. The dancer waved at the two before wheeling his overflowing wagon of plushies behind him. His Blastoise walked along beside him, until they finally reached the two.

"Hey guys! You two trying to win some plushies too?" He asked.

"Yeah, but not that much..." Serena said. "You must be really good at mini games." She pointed to the wagon that had more than a dozen plushies inside of it.

"Yeah! I try to win as much as I can whenever there's a carnival. The most I won at a time was fifty seven!" He placed his hands on his hips as his facial expression shifted to one filled with pride. He then rested his arms by his side before looking past the two as if he was searching for the pair from Lumiose city. "So where's Clemont and Bonnie?" He asked. "Is Bonnie forcing him to win him a ton of prizes." He chuckled, knowing that seemed to be something that Bonnie would do.

Ash slightly blushed because this was the first time the two were out and about without the others to get some alone time. Only Clemont, Bonnie, and Dawn knew of their relationship. Should he tell him that they were now a couple?

"Ash and I are actually out on our own," said Serena, beating him to it.

"Oh?" Tierno raised an eyebrow. "You two are out on a date?" Tierno teased as a mischievous grin formed upon his face. The same grin that terrified him that same morning.

"Actually... yes." Serena took a moment to respond, and Ash jumped, startled by how straightforward she was being. "You see, Tierno... Ash and I are actually a couple now..." She admitted, shyly.

"Really?" Tierno shifted his eyes between the two. "Wow! That's so awesome. I'm so happy for the two of you!"

"Thank you so much!" Serena smiled as Tierno began to rub his own nape.

"I guess that means I was too late with making my own move," he joked before facing the booth where Ash just could not win a prize. "As congratulations, I'm going to win you a prize at this booth!" He said before handing his own card to the man at the booth.

"Oh, that's really nice of you Tierno, but you don't have to," said Serena.

"Yeah," Ash said. "It's actually quite ha-"

Tierno managed to score three consecutive baskets before Ash could even finish his own sentence.

"Here you go!" With his height, Tierno managed to grab onto the pokepuff plushie that he felt was right for the couple – one that was completely brown, signifying that it was an incredibly chocolatey one. "This is a gift from me! I hope you guys think about me when you look at it!" He laughed. "I do like my chocolate you know!"

Serena grabbed onto the plushie, and gave Tierno her thanks. "That's good to know," Serena giggled. "Ash and I will bake you some chocolatey pokepuffs some day then!"

Ash rapidly blinked as the two continued on with a conversation. He could not believe what just happened. Tierno achieved what he wanted to achieve in the last forty five minutes. He did it with such ease, and rather cooly too. Having all those plushies with him also signified that he excelled at all the games here, which, well, made him look cooler. Ash wanted to look cool just like him. Serena was probably admiring Tierno more than him now.

"Anyways, I'll leave you two lovebirds alone!" Tierno waved off.

"See you tomorrow!" Serena called out, and the only thing Ash could manage to do was wave.

* * *

Ash sat at the picnic bench silently as he stared off into the distance at Serena who was standing in line at one of the food trucks. Beside him was Pikachu, Togetic, and the rest of their Pokemon, out of their pokeballs, enjoying the food that Serena seemingly made with Dawn earlier that morning. After taking out all that food out of her bag, she told him that she wanted to make something that would energize his Pokemon for their upcoming battles. So, with Dawn's help, and apparently Cilan's (over the phone), she created a multitude of dishes that all his Pokemon were currently enjoying.

The aspiring Pokemon Master sighed as he rested his chin on the palm of his hand. All he did was ask her on a date, and she was doing more than showing him that she wanted to spend time with him. She was showing him that she wanted to spend time with his Pokemon too. She made them a bunch of food, and all that he did was break something of hers, and let someone else win her a prize. She even told him that she wanted to make him some food too, but ran out of time.

Despite trying his best to shake off his nervous feelings, and keep the day going great, he just felt like it was slowly going downhill. He supposed that the day couldn't get much worse though. Right now they were going to eat lunch. Eating was his most favorite thing in the world aside from Pokemon, battles, and, well, Serena. Nothing could go wrong when you're eating.

"Here you go," Serena saunted back with two to go trays in her hands. She placed the dishes on the table, before taking a seat opposite from Ash on the picnic bench.

His mouth began to drool as he eyed the food in amazement. He swallowed hard as he admired the rice that was decorated nicely with dried seaweed to make it look like a Snorlax. Beside that was a bunch of vegetables cut up to look like flowers, and beside that was what smelled to be curry. He glanced up to look at Serena's dish that pretty much looked the same other than the fact that her rice was decorated to look like a Jigglypuff. The way the food looked reminded him of how his mom packed his lunches back home. He couldn't wait for Serena to meet her, and taste her delicious food too.

"After this, we can go get some dessert," said Serena while placing a napkin over her lap. "I saw some Vanillite cones when I was waiting in line." She smiled before taking a bite out of the flower shaped carrot.

"Sure, that sounds awesome," said Ash. He raised his spoonful of food near his mouth, but was quick to drop it back onto his tray as Pikachu squirted a dime size amount of ketchup into his eye.

"Ahh," Ash groaned as he shut his one eye in pain. He knew he should have moved that bottle of ketchup to another picnic table. He thought Pikachu would be able to prevent itself from playing with it, but he guessed wrong.

"Pika!" Pikachu stood up with the bottle of ketchup in its hands. It dropped the bottle behind it as an attempt to hide the proof that it's been holding onto it. It was no use though, the condiment was already all over the electric mouse's tiny paws.

"Are you okay, Ash?" Serena asked, standing up from her seat to reach for a few napkins. She grabbed a few in her hand before handing them over to Ash.

"It's okay, I'm fine..." Ash said, rubbing his eye. It was no use though. The more he rubbed it, the more it began to sting. He winced once more in pain while grabbing the tissues from Serena's grip.

"I can get you some water so you can flush it out of your eye."

"No, I'll just go to the washroom. I saw one on our way here," he said before standing up from his seat. Just as he did though, his upper thigh hit against the edge of the table, causing his plate of food to topple over, and spill all over his jeans. "OWWW!" Ash screamed in pain, feeling the hot temperature seep through the denim and onto his skin. "GAAH!" He jumped away from the bench, wiping away the pieces of rice, veggies, and curry sauce that was clinging to his jeans.

"Ash!" Serena called out as Pikachu did the same. "Are you okay?!" She grabbed a handful of napkins from the table and rushed over to him.

"Gren!" Greninja did the first thing that came to its mind. It sent a few Water Shuriken's above Ash's head, drenching him in water. "Gren!?" It called out once again, noticing that the stain hasn't faded away. It was readying itself to use another Water Shuriken, but was immediately stopped by Ash's command.

"It's fine Greninja!" He called out, as a dozen eyes began to stare at the commotion that was going on around their table.

He's never felt so humiliated in his entire life. What made it even worse was the fact that the stain located on the front of his jeans looked like some kind of poop stain. How was he going to explain that? That some kid was sitting on him, and pooped? There was absolutely no way that he was going to be walking around like this.

* * *

"Well, it's better than nothing!" Serena pointed out as she looked at Ash in the mirror. She stuffed his soiled clothing into an empty plastic bag, and looked up at Ash again.

The raven haired trainer sighed, staring at the outfit that he had to wear. It was a carnival so there wasn't many stands that were selling clothes. The only thing that Serena managed to pull together was a pair of green swimming trunks with purple blobs on it. What made it even worse was the shirt that was clashing with it. A bright yellow, button up shirt with silhouettes of palm trees situated all over it. Other than that, he wore a pair of black flip flops. There were other shirts with better designs, but it was too bad that none of them were his size.

Serena giggled once more, eying the boy who staring at himself through the mirror with a frown. "At least you broke my device. If you didn't, I would have taken lots of pictures by now!" She burst out into a louder fit of laughter.

Even if he wasn't enjoying himself, at least Serena was, and that was all he wanted. A small smile formed on his face as he watched the girl continue on in laughter. He guessed breaking that device was the best thing that happened so far.

Ash raised his hand up to his chest and began to inspect it. It wasn't trembling as much as before. His nervousness must be fading away. "So what would you like to do next?" He asked, looking back up at her.

After a minute of trying to get a hold of herself Serena said, "I'm not sure..." She pressed her index finger against her lips before looking over to all the food stands. "You didn't really get to eat, Ash. We should get you some more food."

"That's okay with me," he replied before scanning the area. "To be honest, I ate a lot for breakfast."

"But by now, you should have eaten three times the amount."

"Do I really eat that much?" He raised an eyebrow.

Serena giggled. "Yeah, you do."

"Well... We've spent so much time at the basketball mini game, and we spent a lot of time trying to find me some clothes. I don't want to waste anymore... time." He heard a few screams coming from a nearby ride. "How about we go on a ride? We still have nine credits left. I'm sure we can go on one."

"Okay, that's fine with me." She smiled, and the two headed off towards their next destination.

After a few minutes, the two reached the side of the carnival that contained all the rides. He looked around the area, trying to find a ride that Serena would like. He squinted his eyes, before noticing a ride labelled _'The Tunnel of Love'_. It only needed eight credits for the both of them. From far away, he could see couples getting into a boat for two that was made to look like a Swanna. He watched as the couples began to snuggle close to one another, and he started to think about the couple he saw earlier that morning. He was still new to the idea of having a girlfriend, but if everyone in that line was a couple, it had to be something that Serena would like. It didn't look that fun to him, but all he had in mind was what Serena would want.

"Close your eyes," he said as the idea of surprising her came to his mind.

"Close my eyes?" Serena raised an eyebrow.

"I want to surprise you! You wanted me to surprise you earlier, but it didn't really work out."

"Oh.. Okay..." Serena smiled before shutting her eyes tightly, and covering her face with her hands.

Ash reached out to her shoulders, and began leading her to the line. Within a couple minutes the two reached a congested crowd, and Ash had no idea as to where the line was starting.

"Are you going on this ride?" A woman working at one of the rides asked.

"Uhh, yeah." Ash blinked, unsure as to what ride she was talking about.

"It will be eight credits."

 _Eight credits? Yep, this has to be the right one._ Ash reached into the pocket of his swimming trunks, and grabbed onto the card that held the remainder of their credits.

"Okay." The woman swiped it on her machine before looking over to Ash, and noticing his eccentric choice of style. "I just cannot keep up with these trends..." The lady mumbled to herself as Ash led Serena up a flight of stairs.

"Are we in line?" Serena asked after they came to a stop. "Can I open my eyes now?"

"Yeah," said Ash.

He watched as Serena opened her eyes. The honey blonde blinked several times before looking for the sign of what ride they were going to go on. "The... Firecoaster?" Serena asked.

"What?" Ash looked up to see where Serena was looking.

"The Firecoaster... Like a rollercoaster. I knew you were going to choose this ride."

"What?" Ash asked once more before noticing that they got in the wrong line. Rather than looking up at the signs, he trusted that when the lady said eight credits, it meant for the other ride. He should have looked up instead of trusting his own instincts.

"No Pokemon allowed." A man said as the people behind them forced them to continue their way up the flight of stairs.

"Will you wait for us at the end of the ride, Togetic and Pikachu?" Serena asked as she removed her own hat and Ash's from their heads. She then tucked them into her bag before giving it to Togetic. Ash followed in her footsteps and gave his own belongings to Pikachu.

"Pika..." Pikachu agreed sadly before scurrying off behind Togetic that was flying towards the end of the ride.

"But, I … I didn't mean to choose this-" Ash tried, but was already being ushered into his seat beside Serena.

"I hope this ride won't be too bad," said Serena after looking up at the many loops that would bring them high up into the air.

Ash looked over to her, noticing the worried look on her face. He knew that Serena wasn't really into thrilling, heart wrenching rides like a rollercoaster. He sighed as the workers tugged on their harnesses to make sure that they were locked in place.

Moments after, the ride slowly began to move forward, and Ash glanced over at the honey blonde once more. She already had her eyes closed and looked like she was praying to be alive at the end of the ride. He found it cute, but he still felt bad that Serena had to go through all of it.

The raven haired trainer grabbed onto the metal handles of his harness as the rollercoaster train slowly ascended up on the track. He looked below him to see Pikachu and Togetic's figures slowly decrease in size. He then looked up ahead of him, noticing that they were nearing the highest part of the first obstacle. The adrenaline began to rush through his veins, and his heart began to beat much faster. He felt bad about accidentally bringing Serena to this ride, but at the same time, he really did want to ride the rollercoaster.

"I hope this isn't going to be too scary," said Serena as she grabbed onto Ash's knee.

Ash blushed at the physical contact. He smiled to himself as he looked at the girl who already had her eyes fully shut when the fun hasn't even begun. "It's okay, Serena." He reached out to hold her hand. "It won't be that scary. I pro-"

In a flash of a second the rollercoaster descended downwards at a horrifying speed. Ash yelped out in surprise as Serena screamed out from the top of her lungs. He then closed his eyes the moment he felt his eyeballs drying out by the intense amount of air hitting his face. He felt Serena's nails dig deep into his skin, and Ash couldn't help but wince in pain.

 _This is what I get for taking her to this ride... This is fine..._ He bit his bottom lip as he felt their cart ascend upwards once more, but this time into a loop. For a second, the cart lingered upside down on the loop, and all you could hear was the shrieks of the fellow riders who wanted their blood to stop rushing to their heads.

After what felt like a long time, the cart moved along the track at the same horrifying speed before once again turning upwards into another loop. This time, the cart didn't linger, but instead continued onto to a couple more loops. The amount of momentum going around Ash began to take a toll on him. He felt himself getting dizzy, but that wasn't what was bothering him. The upset feeling in his stomach was making the state of his body rather ill. He could feel something travelling up his esophagus, and into his mouth. Ash puffed out his cheeks, tasting the rancid vomit that just entered his mouth. He clenched his teeth, and used up all his energy to keep his mouth from opening up. Serena was absolutely a neat freak. If he got any vomit on her, that would be the end of any future dates.

Serena's grip on his knee clenched up, and once again he could feel her nails dig into his skin. He wanted to scream out in pain, but he did not want any of vomit leaving his mouth. He tried his best to swallow it, but boy was that a mistake.

Finally, the ride came to a stop, and momentarily after, their harnesses popped up, signifying that they were allowed to leave.

"Well, that was fun," Serena said, unsure. She then let go of his knee to see the shape of her nails engraved into his skin. "Oh, I'm so sorry Ash..." She apologized. "I won't do that next time we-"

Serena stopped as Ash ran out of the cart, and began puking over the edge of the railing. He watched as what seemed to be a mixture of his breakfast, and stomach juices falling onto the grassy field beneath him. He could hear the people all around him yelling out 'gross' or 'that's disgusting', but that didn't stop him from doing what he had to do. He felt embarrassed, but not so much after noticing that there were a couple other individuals who were doing the same thing.

Ash then turned around, and looked at the honey blonde who was eying him with worry. "Today just isn't your day, is it?" Serena asked as Ash noticed that some of his vomit slopped all over his tropical shirt.

Ash scowled, noticing that he yet again had to change into another shirt, or at least go through the rest of the day smelling vile. "Aww... man."

"It's okay Ash!" Serena smiled, "It's a good thing it was buy one get one free!"

He almost forgot that they got himself another shirt. It was worse than the one that he was already wearing though. It was pink with white, horizontal stripes, and Jigglypuff's situated all over it. He did not want to wear that, but he guessed he had to.

* * *

Ash stared at himself through the bathroom mirror as he vigorously brushed his teeth. Pikachu wiggled its nose, trying to smell for the vomit that was overtaking his mouth.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu nodded its head, signifying that it could no longer smell it.

Ash gargled, before spitting out the water. He then opened his mouth once more for Pikachu to smell it.

"Pika, Pikachu!" Pikachu jumped up, showing that it smelled minty fresh.

"Thanks, buddy." Ash sighed, "But I don't think my minty fresh breath will save me from this disastrous date."

Pikachu tilted its head in confusion. In it's own world, it thought that the date was going pretty great. It knew for sure that Serena was enjoying it. It wanted to tell its trainer, but Ash was too busy gathering his belongings.

Ash stuffed his brush into his bag before draping it over his shoulder. He then walked out of the washroom to see Serena, but she wasn't alone.

Standing in front of the honey blonde was Alison. The girl who caused all this trouble. Ash walked over to the two girls, wondering what was going on.

"Oh hey, Ash," said Alison. "I just wanted too..." She paused after noticing that outfit that he was wearing. She tried her best to stifle her laughter, but it wasn't doing her any good.

Tired, Ash shot the leader of the Eeveelution Squad a glare, causing her to clear her throat.

"What's going on," he asked.

"I just wanted to apologize for my behavior. I didn't mean to hurt your relationship, or your feelings." She said, looking at Serena. "If you hadn't heard from the others... I sort of have a boy crazy problem."

Serena giggled. "Lei told me about it, but it's okay. Everything is fine now."

"You're too nice, Serena."

"It's not good to hold a grudge."

A small smile formed upon Alison's face. "With that attitude, I guarantee you that you will be Kalos Queen one day." She then reached into her pocket, pulling out the familiar blue ribbon that was once tied to Ash's zipper. "Anyways, this is yours..." She looked over to Ash, and handed him the ribbon.

"Thanks..." Ash reached out for the silky material.

"Well, I should leave. We're performing later tonight. You guys should come watch if you have the time," she said before leaning close to Serena to whisper something into her ear. "Although, I don't think you should show up with him dressed like that. He looks like my grandfather when he's in his pajamas."

Ash's jaw dropped, hearing every word that was coming out of Alison's mouth. He looked over at Serena who giggled, and he was ready to protest about the terrible day he was having.

"Well, he is mine," said Serena. "I need to be able to walk beside him even when he's an embarrassment."

Ash had no clue as to whether or not he should be taking that as a compliment or as an insult.

"It's a good thing that I didn't snatch him away from you then." Alison teased before jogging away from the two. "I hope to see you two later!" She called out before waving the two of them off.

"We'll try our best to make it!" Serena called out.

* * *

The sun slowly began to descend below the horizon, causing the moon to become more visible in the sky. The two lovebirds walked along an empty part of the carnival that was surrounded by trees, and a small pond. The two walked around the pond in silence as Togetic and Pikachu scurried around the area, playing with one another.

Feeling a bit tired, the raven haired trainer sat on a nearby bench, and sighed as he stretched out his legs. He watched as Serena sauntered over to the two Pokemon, playing along with them. He smiled, watching her having a good time. He just wished that he had a great time as much as she did.

"Huh?" He heard Serena say.

He then raised an eyebrow as Togetic flew over the pond. It swooned, flying in a circle before releasing a swirl of stars around it. The glowing yellow stars hit the surface of the water, causing it to slightly release a layer of steam. In a few moments, the stars floated around the area, with specks of water all around it, almost making it look like they were staring at their own cluster of the galaxy.

Ash stood up before walking over to Serena who was bedazzled by what Togetic just achieved. "It looks like Togetic will be a performer." Not that he didn't see it coming or anything, but at this moment, it was confirmed.

"Yeah," Serena said happily. "I already have a dozen ideas in mind!" She said as Togetic fluttered towards her. She petted its crown before it fluttered off to play with Pikachu again.

"Hey, Ash?" Serena said. "I know you were having quite a lot of troubles today, but I hope that doesn't stop you from going out with me again."

"Huh?" Ash widened his eyes. He didn't think that Serena would want to go out with him again because of his bad day.

"Don't be surprised," she said, reading his mind. "Everyone has bad days. Even if today wasn't what you expected, it was still really fun."

"To be honest..." Ash began rubbing his nape. "I was really nervous about this date. I couldn't sleep all night, and the only thing that made me feel better was training. I know I could have won you a plushie, but my nervousness got the best of me..."

"That's okay. You can always win me one next time."

"Yeah, but... I've been travelling with you for awhile now, and I've never felt nervous around you. At least not like this," he pouted. "How come you don't feel nervous?"

"I don't know..." Serena turned her head, meeting his dark brown eyes. "I've always been nervous around you, and I've even had a hard time just walking beside you... But after getting to know you better, you're the type of person who would never judge me or anyone. You'd always try to understand the people around you before jumping to assumptions. Even if they are bad people, you're always looking for the best. Because of that... I don't have to worry about much."

That made a lot of sense to him. He felt Serena was the same way. Even if he messed up, he knew for sure that she would understand. "Thanks, Serena..." He smiled at her before pulling her into a hug. "Thanks for everything."

The honey blonde flinched at first, but was quick to relax and even wrap her own arms around him. Thinking about it now, he wouldn't change anything that happened in the last few hours.

"We should go see the Eeveelution Squad perform," said Serena, after the two broke out of their hug.

"Okay," Ash chuckled as he watched the honey blonde began to head back into the loudness of the carnival.

Without giving it a thought, Ash draped an arm around her before giving her a kiss on her cheek. Serena stopped, surprised by Ash's sudden romantic action.

"Sorry... I just wante-"

He was stopped by Serena's lips pressing against his own. "Me too!" She squeaked shyly before scurrying away, flustered.

This time Ash was stunned. For a second he just stood there, trying to process the fact that she just kissed him. He then raised his hands to his view. Even with that kiss, he was no longer trembling. In fact, he didn't feel nervous at all. With that, he felt confident to one day, kiss her again.

"C-C'mon!" Serena called out. "Alison invited Clemont and the others too! We should meet with them. They might be worried since we've been out for so long!"

And once again, his hands began to tremble. Not because of Serena. Because he knew Bonnie was going to tease him, and bombard him with questions.

* * *

 **Next Chapter Summary:**

 **The End of The Road:** After losing to Alain, and coming in second at the Lumiose Conference, Ash is offered to go to Alola to continue on with his goal to become Pokemon Master. Serena though is offered to train with Palermo in Kalos. Will the two be separated?

* * *

 **Note:** The next chapter will be the final and last chapter to these "one-shots". As of now it seems it will be rather short, but we shall see. :)


	19. REWRITE: The End of The Road

**Rewritten: October 5, 2016**

 **Note: Hey guys! This is a rewrite! I got a review from a guest saying they were disappointed, and that I could do better. And well, I did feel like I could do better, so I rewrote it. It may still not be as good, but it's better than the last. I'm sorry for giving you guys a bad chapter. I hope you enjoy this one!**

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. **PunishedEagle88, arno wisp, Guest, ChaosLuu, FieryQuartz1550, Q-A Authoress, WolfGirl, rams30, MANbearPIG01, FantasyLover88, wolves22, 49er, espeon44.**

* * *

 **Summary:** After losing to Alain, and coming in second place at the League, Ash is offered to go to Alola to continue on with his goal to become a Pokemon Master. Serena though, is offered to train with Palermo in Kalos. Will the two be separated?

 **EP 19: The End Of The Road**

 _The results of the League have passed, and our favorite raven haired trainer has placed second in the competition. Despite not coming in first, our heroes are found back in Lumiose City to celebrate Ash's efforts. Planned for some time now, our heroes have a busy day ahead of them. To cook. To decorate. To entertain. All of the friends they've met and come to love in the past few months have been invited to the Lumiose sibling household to celebrate their successful year!_

* * *

Looking through the glass window, the curious eyes of the young performer rested upon a jade colored dish containing dozens of white shimmering pebbles. Stemming from the heaps of pebbles was a a dark brown tree trunk made out of glass, that split off into a few branches. From the glass branches, Serena examined the pale pink flowers, and the light green leaves that were delicately attached to the glass figure. Even if it wasn't real, there was something about the five petaled flowers that was catching her attention. She's never seen a cherry blossom tree in her life before, and even if this replica was a fake, she could already tell that it was the most beautiful flower she laid her eyes on.

"Serena! C'mon!"

The honey blonde blinked, her eyes a tad bit teary from staring at the glass cherry blossom tree for a little too long. She turned her attention to Dawn who was waving at her with a bag of groceries in her hand. She was clearly done finding whatever she needed at the store. Behind her stood Ash who was holding onto a few more bags, and Bonnie who most likely persuaded the boy to carry everything for her.

Serena jogged over to the others with her own bag of berries. It was a celebration. She had to make pokepuffs for everybody, and they had to be the best out of all the batches she's made.

"I have everything I need," said Dawn while double-checking the items in her bag. "You guys are going to love this recipe I learned from a coordinator I met in Hoenn!"

"Can't wait to try it," said Serena, smiling at the bluenette who was excited to get to work in the kitchen.

"I got everything my brother asked me for," Bonnie chimed in, pointing at the raven haired trainer who was struggling with keeping the bagged groceries within his arms.

"Gr-Great," Ash grunted, trying to keep a bottle of soy sauce from falling out. "Can we go now, please?"

The girls giggled as they watched Ash struggle to even take one step forward. It was just like him to try and handle everything all by himself. If only Clemont joined them on their ingredient hunt, then he would help Ash and force Bonnie to carry a few bags herself.

"So, do you have everything you need for your pokepuffs, Serena?" Bonnie asked, finally deciding to give the boy a hand. Dawn followed in Bonnie's actions until Ash was holding nothing, but a bag containing a few snacks – a few snacks most likely for his own enjoyment.

Serena opened up her plastic baggie to make sure that she had everything she needed. "I need to pick up a few items to decorate the pokepuffs with. It's a special day, and I want them to look even better," she said. The extra ornamental pieces weren't needed at all. She just wanted some time to herself. Some time to think.

Ever since the end of the league, the five of them have been together nonstop. The only time she had to herself was when she would shower, but even then, Dawn or Bonnie would walk in the washroom and ask her where the toothpaste was. The two of them were always losing things, and Serena just somehow knew where everything was. If that weren't the case, the two of them would just barge in to ask her about her time with Ash. What was going to happen to the two of them after he left to continue on with pursuing his dream? That was something Serena really needed to think about.

"Oh okay, where should we go for that then?" Bonnie asked surveying the area for some other crafty place that would suit Serena's needs.

Serena raised her arm to her chest and slightly grasped the ribbon in the process. "You guys can go ahead. I can make it back by myself. Besides, there isn't enough room in the kitchen if all of us are making our food," she said while staring at Ash with hopeful eyes. Despite wanting time to herself, she was also using this time to test whether or not Ash would want to spend more time with her since he was leaving the following day.

"You do have a point there," Dawn said. "Don't take too long then! I'm dying to learn your pokepuff recipe!"

"I won't," Serena smiled before glancing over at Ash who wasn't even paying any attention to her. His eyes were glued to all the snacks in the bag, deciding what to munch on first.

Finally noticing the situation, Ash walked over to the honey blonde and took her bag from her grasp. "I'll bring these back for you, so it's easier for you to carry everything else." He smiled at the girl before gently squeezing her hand. He was still being so sweet, yet so oblivious to her needs. It was driving her crazy. She wanted to be mad, but how could she when he did stuff like that.

"Thanks," she responded in a low voice before they all said their goodbyes.

Serena watched as the trio continued on their walk back to the siblings' home. She waited until she could no longer see them before roaming around the streets of the city. She sighed with downcast eyes as she maneuvered herself around the people who were walking in the opposite direction. She then looked up at the clear blue sky, wondering what was going to happen next between her and Ash. After her lost at becoming Kalos Queen, she was offered to train with Palermo, back in Lumiose City. It was a great offer, and she would be able to see Clemont and Bonnie everyday. On the other hand, she would no longer see Ash. A few days after the League, he was offered to go to another region to continue on with pursuing his dream of becoming a Pokemon Master. Ash was always the type to chase after his dreams, and Serena knew that he wouldn't stay in Kalos just to be with her. She wouldn't even let him stay if he decided that he wanted too. Chasing his dreams was far more important than their newly formed relationship.

She wanted to be with Ash though. She wanted to travel with him until the very end. When she first started her journey it was merely just to meet an old friend, and return his handkerchief. After that, it was just to be around Ash because she absolutely adored him. After the months they spent together, Serena realized that her own journey was far more important than a crush. Don't get her wrong, she loved the fact that Ash somehow fell for her along the way too, but she needed to figure out what she wanted to do with her life. Clemont was on his way to becoming the best inventor in Kalos, if not, the entire world. She could tell that Bonnie was surely developing into someone who was going to take care of Pokemon in the future. Cilan was striving to become the best connoisseur, in well, everything, and Dawn was on her way to becoming top Coordinator.

She was unsure if she wanted to become Kalos Queen, but it was a start, and it was something she wanted to explore and learn much more about. She wanted to have a goal like everyone else, and she didn't want that goal to be following the love of her life for the rest of her life. In the end of that scenario, everyone would grow as individuals and become successful, and she would just be known as some kind of stalker.

The honey blonde continued her stroll until she reached a small roundabout with a nicely mowed plot of land in the center. Serena walked over to the nearest bench and watched as an older man tend to the circular plot of land. Beside him was a wagon filled with gardening tools and potted plants that were beginning to sprout. He must have been there to decorate the area. She bet that it was going to be beautiful once he was done with it.

Serena then looked around at the people who were continuing on with their daily life around her. A few of them were rushing about to their destination, while others stood there on the streets, staring up at the blue skies and the puffy cumulus clouds. Whether Ash was going to stay with her, leave her, always cherish her, or even forget her, they were both bound to continue on their own journeys and start new adventures with new people. No matter what, life was going to move on.

There was one thing that was pondering in her mind though. _What was Ash thinking? What did he want to happen with their relationship?_ He decided to move onto the next region without even talking to her about it. He accepted that offer in an instant. After that, he pretty much acted the same. He was sweet and paid most of his attention to her, but other than that, the fact that he was leaving for a long time didn't seem to waver him in the slightest. It was bothering Serena with no doubt, but because Ash seemed completely unaffected by it, Serena acted the same way too.

Maybe Ash didn't care. Maybe to him, their relationship was a thing of the moment, and after leaving Kalos she would mean nothing to him. It surely did seem that way. For the past week, she's been trying to get some alone time with the boy, and he would reject her to spend time with the others. She understood that he would want to be with everyone, but wouldn't he want to have slightly more time with her? The more Serena thought about it though, the more it hurt. Could Ash really just forget about her like that? Was she not a good girlfriend? Should she have kissed him more or made him more treats?

Serena clenched her fist, crunching up her cardigan in the process. Her mind was all over the place, and the more she thought about it, the more she convinced herself that Ash didn't value her as much as she thought. If he didn't care about the two of them separating, then she shouldn't care about it either.

The honey blonde stood up from the bench, and came to a conclusion. She was determined to forget about the boy before he even left. She was going to avoid him at all costs, and maybe that way; their goodbye wouldn't affect her at all.

* * *

Serena sighed in relief as she stared at the dozens of pokepuffs that were nicely arranged in the table in front of her. She even made specific pokepuffs for all of her friend's pokemon, and even arranged them into separate plates for better organization. She couldn't have done it without the help of Dawn, Bonnie and her own pokemon though.

"Great job you guys!" Serena complimented her team as they began putting them in boxes to give to everyone as a gift.

"I can't wait to try mine," Dawn said with her mouth watering. "And I can't wait to try making my own. May and the others would love to try them too."

Serena smiled. "I hope I get to meet May sometime."

"Me too. You guys would get along great!" Ash interrupted, walking into the room. He walked over to Serena, and looked down at the plate that seemed to contain a few extra pokepuffs. With sparkling eyes, the boy reached out to grab one, but was stopped by Serena swatting his hand with a wooden spoon. "Owww!" He yelped in pain.

Serena glared at the boy. "Those aren't for you, those are for the people who helped me assemble them."

Bonnie and Dawn giggled as Serena handed them the plate of treats in order to prevent Ash from trying to take one away again.

"I'm sorry, I promise I'll help next time..." He apologized.

Serena pursed her lips together. She had an urge to smack his head with the wooden spoon, but convinced herself not too. _There isn't even going to be a next time. How could you talk so casually like that?_ Serena thought, causing the anger in her gut to grow.

"I guess I'll just have what's here then," Ash chuckled, meeting Serena's eyes.

The honey blonde blushed, and the sound of her heart began to hammer through her ears as Ash reached his hand out towards her cheek. _Stop that.._ Serena was going through her own inner conflict as Ash's thumb came into contact with her skin. She reached for her chest, clutching the apron in her hand as some kind of attempt to get her heart to stop beating. In a quick second, the boy swiped his thumb against her cheekbone, wiping away the yellow icing that was drying up on her skin.

"Thanks!" He said with a smile before licking the icing from his thumb. "This icing is delicious! I can't wait to try it on an actual pokepuff!" He then walked away from the girl, leaving her emotions in a mess.

Serena's eyes followed the boy as he left the room and into the kitchen. Her eyes lingered on the doorway for a minute. She could feel her heart slowly settling back into a comfortable state, and as it did, she unclutched the cottony fabric and exhaled. She found it unfair. He couldn't walk around, and do those things freely. He was leaving the next day.

Serena scowled before returning back to packaging the pokepuffs into the boxes. She was going to have to work harder if she wanted to erase Ash from her mind.

* * *

The quaint home of the siblings was now filled with all the guests they have invited. They wished they could have invited everyone they met along their journey, but it had to be limited due to the lack of space.

Serena spent most of her time catching up with the people she hasn't seen in awhile to prevent herself from even looking at Ash or thinking about him. It was incredibly hard for her though. Naturally, Miette and Shauna were curious about their relationship since Tierno told them about it. So, in the end she avoided Ash, but just to talk about him to those who asked.

The honey blonde sighed as the girls left her to talk to the others. She grabbed onto a cup of juice before sneaking out the back to take a breather. She sat on the steps by the back door and listened to the muffled noises of the people in the house.

She sighed as she stared into her cup of apple juice, almost seeing her own reflection in the fluid. Did she make a right choice to avoid Ash? Even when she was trying her best to avoid him, he didn't seem to care. She hasn't said one word to him since the party started, and he didn't seem to try and look for her in the crowd to talk to her. Naturally, it made sense. This was his last day to talk with everyone. Everyone else was on his mind.

"Serena?" The boy she couldn't stop thinking about took a few steps down the stairs to join her. "What are you doing out here? You should be in with everyone else."

"Oh," Serena responded in a low tone. "It's just a little hot in there. I wanted to get some fresh air."

Ash chuckled before reaching over to place his hand on top of Serena's. Serena bit her bottom lip, noticing his gesture. She pulled her hand back and cupped it over the other side of the styrofoam cup, and interlaced her fingers. She noticed the slight frown on his face, but she played it off like she didn't know that he was going to do that.

"Well," Ash pulled his own hand back and placed it on his lap. "Now that I think about it, it is pretty hot in there."

Serena glanced over at the boy as he stared up at the clear night sky. A minimal amount of stars could be found amongst the bright lights of the city. She squinted her eyes at Ash, wondering what was going on in his mind. She felt rather unsettling deciding on giving him the cold shoulder until his departure. She shouldn't have come up with that conclusion. He was sitting here with her instead of talking to everyone else at the party. Maybe this was the perfect time for them to talk about their future together.

"Ah-" Serena was in the middle of saying his name, but was stopped by the raven haired trainer as he stood up from the set of stairs.

"Well, I'll be going back in!" He said as he stretched his arms above his head. "You should come back in soon too! Everyone wants to thank you for the pokepuffs!"

Serena gaped as she watched Ash scurry up the small plight of stairs, and back into the party without turning back to look at her.

That was it. She scowled and leaned back as she crossed her arms over her chest. She was weak for a mere minute, but now, she was dead set on setting him off back to Kanto without any kind of heartfelt goodbye. The second she returned to the party she was going to march right into Bonnie's room and rip up the scrapbook she made for him. She was even going to throw out all the snacks she bought for him to enjoy on his flight back home. Heck, she was going to rip off the blue ribbon on her dress if she had too.

* * *

The time has come. Serena stood at the edge beside Dawn as Ash began saying his goodbyes to each one of them. She was on edge, and her mind was fueled by anger. She was ready to give Ash a piece of her mind the second he was going to say his goodbye to her. She fiddled with the hem of her cardigan, trying to mask her anger away from the others. Instead she stood there with a stoic expression, waiting until it was her turn to talk with him.

"I'll be top coordinator the next time we see each other!" The bluenette said as she high fived the raven haired trainer.

Ash chuckled. "I'm counting on that."

Dawn giggled before giving her attention to Pikachu, and giving it an affectionate hug. After that, the trio left the building to give the two lovebirds some space. Even Pikachu scurried away with Togetic so the two could have their heartfelt goodbye.

Serena stood there awkwardly, unable to meet Ash's eyes. She stared off to the left at a few flight attendants who were shuffling papers behind the podium. Even with that, she could feel Ash's eyes staring right at her.

"Serena..." Ash said, breaking the silence.

"Ash." Serena shot back somewhat angrily, still avoiding his chocolate colored eyes.

Ash stared at the honey blonde with a look of confusion on his face. He was taken aback by Serena's sudden hostility. "I'm going to miss you alot..." He admitted shyly before reaching out to pull her into a hug.

Noticing him inching closer towards her, Serena backed away and swatted his hand like it was an annoying fly.

Ash pulled his hand back and looked at Serena's face, trying to make out what was going on in her mind. "What's wrong?" He asked with a melancholy expression. "I'm sad too, but I'm trying to make the best of it."

Serena jerked her head to face him, and looked at him with piercing eyes. Ash staggered backwards as he watched Serena clench her fists in anger.

"The best of it?!" Serena began with a rising temper. "You decide to make the best of it now?! For the last week I've been trying to get some alone time with you, but you kept blowing me off for everyone else!"

"Serena, I didn't mean too..." His voice fell. "I just..."

"You just what?!" Her heart began to ring through her ears. The edge of her eyes began to sting with tears, and her throat began to choke as the words continued to leave her mouth. "All I wanted was to spend as much time with you as possible, but you didn't want too! And then, you just kept acting like nothing was going on, like this goodbye wasn't going to happen! You kept acting like everything was okay, but it's not Ash! It's not!" The tears began to fall down her cheek, and she wanted to cry out in so much, but she didn't want Ash to hear any of it.

"Serena, I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean for it be like that..." Ash said apologetically. "I didn't know how to act, and I still don't know how..." He bit his bottom lip before rubbing his nape. "I thought it would be better if I acted like nothing was going to change..."

"But it is changing Ash! All of it is changing!"

Ash reached out to Serena one more time, slowly inching forward to place a hand on her shoulder. As he made contact with her skin, Serena flinched and pulled back. "I don't think I should be with someone who can't reassure me during times like this..." She said, sniffling.

"Don't say that. You're just upset." He took a couple steps forward, but still maintained his distance.

"You didn't even bother talking to me about your choice of setting off on a new adventure on your own..." Serena took a deep breath in, trying to pace her breathing. "I don't think I want to be with someone like that..." She shut her eyes tightly as a new wave of tears began to flow down her face.

"Serena, please, don't be like this..." Ash said. "I'm sorry. I'll do better. Come with me."

"No," The honey blonde turned around. "Goodbye, Ash."

Before she knew it, her heel pushed off from the ground, and she took a step forward. And then another. And another, until she was running. She hadn't the slightest idea as to where to go, but in that moment, it was like her feet had a mind of their own. Her tears blurred her vision, and all she could taste was the saltiness of the tears mixed in with the snot dripping from her nose. She could hear the announcement for Ash's flight, ready to take in the passengers. It didn't matter to her though. He was too late. She was too late. Their relationship was ruined.

She ran out the glass siding doors, and passed the trio before they could even notice her. She continued as if running was the only thing that was saving her from experiencing her first heartbreak. She rushed through the busy streets of Lumiose city, staring at all the people around her. They all looked so happy.

Serena yelped, almost choking on her tears. She glossed over a couple sitting on a bench, sharing a Vanillite cone. Seeing the two caused her heart to sink, and the world around her got hazier. She continued to run, but finally came to a stop when she tripped over a rock.

Serena fell to the ground, and coughed violently before pulling herself up on her knees, with the palms of her hands on the cement. Her heart was beating rapidly from running for so long, and her legs started to ache.

"Are you okay?" Serena looked up to see the gardener from the day before hovering above her. He was old, with a husky voice, and a bushy gray beard.

"I-I'm fine," Serena managed to say once she got a hold of her breathing. She pulled the fabric of her cardigan to her face, and began wiping away her tears. This was one of the only times she didn't care about getting her clothes a little bit dirty.

"You don't seem okay," The man said as he helped Serena to her feet. "What's got you down?"

"I-I don't really want to talk about it..." Serena looked away.

The old man chuckled before stroking his long, disheveled beard. "I am a stranger. That would make sense!"

Serena feigned a smile, trying to amuse the old man.

"Let me tell you something herr," He gestured for Serena to walk towards the plot of land that she was looking at yesterday. "I'm planting something here that hasn't been here before!" He sounded rather proud of himself.

"Oh?" Serena looked at the hole in the center of the plot. "What are you planting?"

"It's called a cherry blossom tree! Dang thing is one of thee hardest trees to grow! No matter what I do, it just won't turn out the way I want it too!"

"Then why don't you grow a different tree?" Serena asked, thinking about the glass version she saw in the window the other day.

"Because that's too darn easy! The best things in life come from the goals you worked so hard to achieve!" The man rummaged through one of the pockets of his overalls before showing it to the honey blonde.

In the picture Serena could see, what seemed to a younger version of the man standing next to a cherry blossom tree. Serena gaped, staring at the beautifully sprouted branches that stemmed from the trunk of the tree. The cherry blossoms attached to the branches were absolutely beautiful. The way the sun hit the pale pink petals in the image left Serena absolutely breathless.

"My great grandfather grew that in my yard when I was a youngin'. He was a gardener too, and that was his proudest creation. It's been kept well in my family ever since then!" He chuckled again with proudness.

"I feel like you're trying to tell me something, but I'm not really sure what you're trying to tell me..." Serena blinked in confusion.

"My dear, I don't know what you're going through, but..." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Life is hard, and things don't always work out the way you want it too, but I will tell you a very important lesson. If you want it with all your heart, you don't give up til' its over."

Serena's eyes widened, the last six words that slipped his mouth sent a wave of nostalgia over her. She could suddenly hear Ash's voice echoing those six words into her mind. For a girl that held onto those words so dearly, she surely seemed to have forgotten about it.

"I-I have to go..." Serena handed the photo back to the old man.

"Atta girl!" The old man encouraged her.

Once again, Serena found herself running through the streets of Lumiose city. She was running fast before, but now she was running like she was an Arcanine. She was probably too late, but if things were meant to be, then fate would have somehow stopped the plane.

Serena continued running until she finally reached the gates of the airport. She looked up at the building, noticing a cloud of black smoke rising from where Ash's plane was supposed to be. _What's going on...?_ Serena thought as she rushed through the sliding doors, and up the escalator.

"Serena?" Dawn called out, "When did you leave? We were waiting for you outside! I thought we were going to watch the plane fly off all together."

"Nevermind that," she said. "What's happening? Did Ash's plane takeoff?"

"I don't think so. We assumed that you were going to watch his plane leave from inside, but then it was taking longer than usual."

"And then this huge explosion happened!" Bonnie chimed in. "Then we came in to see what was happening, but Clemont here is lagging behind as usual."

Serena looked down the escalator. She didn't even notice that she surpassed the inventor when she was running up the escalator.

"We should go check it out then. I hope everyone is okay." Serena said as she continued running ahead.

"I think we'll just get Officer Jenny. Clemont's been really slow lately..." Bonnie said with disappointment. "He's on an escalator, and he's still having a hard time."

"I'm trying my best!" Clemont exclaimed before falling backwards.

Serena gasped, ready to run back down the escalator to make sure that the inventor was okay. Dawn stopped her though, and told her to make sure that the passengers were all right. Serena gave her a firm nod before continuing her run towards the explosion.

"...Jessie!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight, fight, fight!"

"Meowth, that's right!"

The familiar motto sounded through Serena's ears. She took a turn, and saw a few passengers running away or simply cowering behind the podiums and chairs.

"Give back my Pikachu!" Ash yelled out loud with his Greninja standing ahead of him. Standing a few feet away from the two was Team Rocket, holding Pikachu captive in one of their electric proof, glass cages.

"We failed so many times! We aren't going to fail at capturing Pikachu in this region too!" Jessie spat out before ordering her Gourgeist to use Shadow Ball.

"C'mon Braxien!" Serena reached for her Pokeball, and threw it out in front of her. "Use Flamethrower!"

"Braxien!" Braxien ran towards their opponent before Ash was given the chance to even command his Greninja. In a quick second, a swirl of flames came from its stick, and caused an explosion as it collided with Gourgeist's Shadow Ball.

"The twerpette?!" Jessie scowled. "I thought you left to cry in a corner!"

"Serena?" Ash said, shocked. "You came back?"

"Inkay!" James called out to his squid like Pokemon. "Use Psybeam, now!"

"Inkay!"

"There's no time for that! Braxien, Flamethrower once more!" She commanded before looking at Greninja who was waiting for its own directions from its trainer. "Greninja, Water Shuriken!" She commanded the ninja Pokemon because Ash was just to distracted to look at anything else, but her.

The two Pokemon nodded their heads before unleashing their moves. Just like it did in the past, their moves enveloped one another, creating a combo attack before striking Team Rocket.

"Not again!" James said out loud, as the attack sent them flying into the sky.

"Meh, it ain't a surprise..." Meowth sighed.

"We're blasting off again~!" The trio called out in sync before disappearing from the scene.

The honey blonde ran forward, her eyes locked on Pikachu who broke out of its cage while falling. "I got you!" Serena called out as Pikachu landed in her arms.

"Pika Pikachu!" Pikachu licked Serena's cheek, causing her to giggle.

"Serena?" Ash said her name in a calming tone.

The honey blonde turned around and walked towards the raven haired trainer. "I'm sorry, Ash." She said as Pikachu jumped from her arms, and onto the ground beside her. "I didn't mean to run out on you earlier... I was just upset."

Ash smiled, not a single word coming out of his mouth. He just looked at her, and it made her cheeks blush a tint of pink. "Ah-Ash..?" She said his name, feeling uncomfortable by the fact that he was just staring at her.

Before she knew it, the raven haired trainer pulled her into a hug. "I guess there's still a lot I need to learn about girls," he said. "I didn't mean to make you think that I didn't care. I just acted the way I did because our relationship isn't ending. Even if we're in different parts of the world, I'll always remember you, and what we have together will never be broken... We're just starting a new chapter." He loosened his grip on the girl, and looked her in the eyes. "I should have talked to you about it, but I didn't. I'm sorry for that."

"Don't give up til' it's over...?" Serena mumbled.

"Right." He pressed his lips against her forehead.

Serena smiled, and once again her eyes were being overwhelmed with tears. They didn't sting though, in fact, they actually felt soothing. She reached the collar of Ash's shirt, and began to tug on it. Ash pulled his lips away from her forehead, curious to see what she wanted. With one swift motion, Serena pulled him close to her, until finally, their lips were touching.

 _And so, just like the cherry blossom tree that was bound to bloom in the circular plot of grass, their relationship entered a new chapter, and was ready to sprout into its own beautiful memories... Some memories filled with happiness and laughter, others filled with hardships, and tears. Just like the path of the cherry blossom, it was going to be hard, but they weren't going to give up... not til' its over._

* * *

 **You guys are all great, and thanks for enjoying this story with me! After writing it, I have a better sense of what I need to work on, plan on, etc... I will keep trying to improve as a writer, and hopefully get better.**

 **If you're interested in school fics, I've started one called Kalos Academy. You can read that if you like. I also wrote a one shot called Love Potion Disaster if you haven't read that yet. If you aren't interested in either, then hopefully I'll write something that interest you in the future! THANKS xoxoxox.**

 **P.S: There may be a bonus chapter... ahohohoh.**


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